The Identity That Holds the Mask
by mystery0991
Summary: What if, from the age of 9, Naruto has been living two separate lives? Who could tell that a loudmouth, hyperactive ninja is actually an undercover ANBU. If so, how will the future turn out differently, perhaps, with the added romance?WARNING!KakaNaru!
1. Prologue

The Identity That Holds the Mask

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto sigh. Made up some minor characters for the first part, won't be a big part of the story.

Summary: What if, from the age of 9, Naruto has been living two separate lives? Who could tell that a loudmouth, hyperactive ninja is actually an undercover ANBU. Because of the Kyuubi inside him, an agreement was made that his identity would be safe with the Hokage and away from the villagers. Even so, how long will the mask hold...? (Deciding whether to make it into a Kaka/Naru in the end- no offense, not a big fan of Sasu/Naru)

**Prologue:**

"Neh, old-man, no one else would know about this right?" The blond-haired boy standing in front of the Hokage's desk, asked carefully.

Sarutobi stroked his small beard looking thoughtful, "Well, besides you, me and, maybe, your teammates..." He picked up his brush and drew a seal on the document that was holding the ANBU's information, "... no one else."

The boy's sapphire blue eyes softened and a grin played at his lips, "This will be fun." He said rather sarcastically.

The Hokage tossed him a wrapped package, the newly appointed ANBU already knowing what was contained inside, nodded and left in a blink of an eye.

The Sandamine puffed a smoke from his mouth and walked to the window in his office, _Who knew that a 9 year-old could become an ANBU. It surely surpasses Uchich Itachi. He doesn't even have the Sharingan!_ This point made him shiver, _If he knew about the Kyuubi_-, he did not want to dwell on the possibility on the power the boy would attain.

Uzumaki Naruto arrived inside his apartment promptly without using neither the door or the window and placed the package the Hokage had given him deep inside his closet. Devising a plan, he decided to first go to his favourite ramen shop and then train for a couple of hours. Looking around to see if everything was in check, he used his front door to walk out. In his bedroom, inside the new package, lay an ANBU mask in a shape of a kitsune (fox).

**AN: **Thanks for being patient with the prologue, hope you enjoy the first chapter!


	2. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto sigh. Made up some minor characters for the first part, won't be a big part of the story.

Summary: What if, from the age of 9, Naruto has been living two separate lives? Who could tell that a loudmouth, hyperactive ninja is actually an undercover ANBU. Because of the Kyuubi inside him, an agreement was made that his identity would be safe with the Hokage and away from the villagers. Even so, how long will the mask hold...? (Deciding whether to make it into a Kaka/Naru in the end- no offense, not a big fan of Sasu/Naru)

Note: There will be plenty of present and past flashback switching so I'll try my best to distinguish when there's a flashback... yes, I'll try...

**Chapter 1:**

**Past:**

Naruto was to be four in several weeks and he was cheerfully running down to Ichiraku's Ramen after receiving his allowance from the Sandamine. Although bruises and bandages were covering most of his body, it did not affect the bright smile that seemed to be saying "Miso Ramen here I come!" In the midst of his joy, he didn't sense the lurking shadow following him.

Naruto patted his, now full, stomach and strolled out of the shop that welcomed him unlike the other stores. It was starting to darken but Naruto was unafraid, _At least there's nobody to glare at me_, he thought sadly to himself as he walked through the empty streets. Hearing footsteps running towards him, he turned in time to see an iron stick being swung at his head, "FILTHY DEMON!" The man yelled hysterically.

Naruto felt the world go dark for a split second till another hit impacted his stomach; he cried out in pain. "You!" "Killed!" "My!" "Wife!" With every word the attacker spoke, a strike from the iron weapon came into contact with Naruto's body.

"Yamero (stop)..." Naruto shouted weakly, blood mixed with tears streamed down his face. He could feel the metal stick break his arm and the world going fuzzy, "Somebody help..." Deep down he knew no one was going to come and save him, it was only time till death came upon him.

He waited.

But nothing came. Naruto came out of his crumpled form to see what was going on. The man that had attacked him was looking fearfully at two masked figures that have stopped his attacks.

"You are no different than the demon itself." The figure with the kitsune mask said, "Ookami."

"Hai." The one with the wolf-shaped mask, took hold of the now frightened man and they both disappeared for a meeting with the Hokage. The only ones remaining were Naruto and his saviour.

The Kitsune looked down at the beaten boy who was nursing his wounds, the tear-stricken face showed sadness and helplessness. "In a way, I think that the man did the right thing to beat you up."

"Nani?!" Naruto glared at the Kitsune with a slight confusion showing.

"Coward, fear, helplessness... so many weaknesses." The masked figure said deeply. Naruto looked away with a frown on his face. "I won't be surprised if another villager manages to kill you." He turned to walk away. (AN: I know Naruto's only four, the ANBU- who I made up) is just speaking his mind)

Naruto felt his anger boil and quickly stood up, despite the pain he was feeling, "Uruse! I'm not weak nor a coward!" The ANBU stopped.

"Then show me you're not." He simply answered. Silence cut in between.

Naruto smiled weakly, "Oh I will... I'll become stronger, even stronger than you!" A wave of pain swept over him but he continued, "Because I'm... I'm... I'm Uzumaki Naruto and I'll be the strongest Hokage ever! So you better remember me!" He immediately fell forward in a faint. The masked man was still unmoving.

_ Weird kid... well, better get him to the hospital._ He picked up Naruto and they both disappeared from the empty street.

* * *

**Present:**

"Mmm... Miso ramen..." Naruto drooled at the sight of the delicious ramen that was sitting in front of him, "Itadakimasu!" Breaking apart his wooden chopsticks he devoured his dinner while thinking of the idea of having two identities.

* * *

**Past:**

Naruto walked out of the hospital, all injuries healed which was surprising since he was brought in the night before. "You heal pretty quickly, Uzumaki-kuzo." Naruto swung wildly around to find the source of the voice. His eyes led him to a figure standing under a shading tree.

"Omai...?" Naruto did not recognize him because of the shadows around the area of the tree. "Oi, who are you calling kuzo?!" He pointed an accusing finger at the Kitsune.

"Maa, maa, no need to get so sensitive now." Kitsune said calmly.

Naruto lowered his arm and gave him a questioning look, "What do you want with me?"

The man scratched his head, "Now, first of all, the world does not revolve around you... second, last night you said something that highly intrigued me." He waited for Naruto to respond, but the kid seemed to be struggling with something else.

"In... Intrigued?" Naruto said confusingly. If the mask wasn't covering his face, the boy would have seen his eyebrow twitch. "Neh? Why do you wear a mask? Are you an ANBU?" He said cautiously.

"Yes." The man said simply. Naruto flinched slightly.

"That means you're an assassin." He said quietly. The man merely shrugged.

The intense blue eyes stared through the eye holes of the mask, "Can you teach me how to become stronger?"

"Iyada. (No way)" The man said instantly without a second thought.

"Doushite?!" Naruto said in alarm.

It felt like the Kitsune was laughing at him but the mask hid the emotions, "I have other things to do than teach a kid to stand up for himself."

"But-!" A small business card was thrown at him. Before he got a chance to look at it, the Kitsune spoke up again.

"If you are able to enroll in the ninja academy this year and be able to graduate within a year. I _might_ teach you a few things or two." He said monotonously.

"Hontou?" He didn't get a respond, the man wasn't there.

"Oh yeah."

"AH!" Naruto jumped from his position, the ANBU had appeared behind him.

"Give the card that I just gave you at the shop, the owner will know what to do. Good luck!" He said in a false happy tone.

"Heh?!" Naruto spun around but the Kitsune was gone again. He looked back at the business card, "Techou's Weights?"

* * *

**Present:**

Naruto strolled down to the lake that was by the edge of the Fire Country. "Weights..." He patted his wrists, body and ankle, "Yosh, let's start training!" He said particularly to no one.

* * *

**Past:**

"Haha! It's a customer!" A large muscular man came to the counter and shook Naruto's hand rather roughly. Naruto scanned the owner whose eyes were hidden behind sunglasses and his hair was tied into small braids. His moustache was brushed at the top of his lips. (AN: If anyone reads/watches Bleach, they might have an idea) The thing that bothered Naruto the most was the apron he was wearing, it wasn't the dirtiness of it but rather the designs. It had teddy bears and ducks swarming everywhere at the -once was _baby_ blue- apron.

"How can I help you?" The owner had to bend down to communicate, but Naruto found it unnecessary since the volume of the man was deafening.

"Uh... this guy gave this to me." He handed the business card to him and waited patiently.

"Hmm... So you're Uzumaki Naruto." Naruto, after hearing this seemed to shuffle back a bit into a defensive stance. He was expecting a yelling or a "GET OUT OF MY SHOP YOU DEMON!" being thrown at him. Instead, the big, tanned man started to laugh. "No worries kid, you're alright with me. He must sure like you..." His voice trailed off as he went to the back room.

Naruto scanned around the interior of the shop and found that it looked as run-down as it is from the outside. Passerbys didn't even glance at the shop, no wonder there were no businesses. A big 'flomp' was heard and he turned to see what it was. His blue eyes widened, "What are those?"

"Weights." The owner held up a wrist weight, "These will help you with your training. Try them on." Naruto obeyed and put a weight on each limb.

"Heh... I could get used to this." Naruto admired them.

"And this." A thin, black weight vest was thrown at him, "Wear it under your clothes." Naruto did as advised.

"Good, it fits well..." The large man bent down and brought up a box of slates, "... Now for the weights."

"Jo... Jote!" Naruto held up a hand to stop him, "Aren't there weights on these already?" Holding up the wrists to show the strap-ons.

This made the man laugh, "Of course not! Those are just the material to hold them."

"Nani!"

Naruto could hardly stand up with the new weights that were put on, he didn't say anything but looked determined. _Funny, most customers (not that I have many) would whine or try to lighten the weight_. The Teshou owner thought admirely. He glanced at the blond kid again who seemed to be nervous, "What's wrong kid?"

"I'm not sure if I have enough money for these." Naruto replied, a bit embarrassed.

The owner grinned widely, revealing his pearl-white, straight teeth, "Don't worry, all of those are already paid for."

_ Is it just me, or are those teeth too perfect?_ Naruto thought aside. "Huh?" Naruto stared up at the large man, "Who?"

The owner twisted his moustache at the ends, "Well, I can't say who he really is- it's classified- but he's an ANBU..." He watched the boy's attention perk up, "... going by the name of Kitsune." Naruto didn't now what to say since no one has ever been this nice or generous to him (Well, maybe besides Ayame and the owner, Teuchi, at the Ichiraku's Ramen) "He paid a bit more extra so you can come back for extra weights."

"Huh?" Naruto said not gettin what he meant by "extra weights".

The Techou owner laughed out loud in a low rumble, "You don't expect to wear the same weight all the time. By increasing them it would improve your training. I've already calculated the right amount that you can wear so it won't affect your growth. And I tell you kid, those who came to this shop are now either jounins or ANBUs."

"Why's that?" Naruto had seen other weight shops that looked in better condition than the one he is in now.

"Well, we use a different kind of weight that is more dense than normal and our family has the secret technique to shrink the weights but still keep it's density, therefore you could add mare weights without making you look bulky or noticeable." The owner explained like a storybook.

"Sou ka... arigatou.. ano..."

The large man held out his hand, "The name's Tessai."

Naruto struggled to lift his arm up but managed to shake it momentarily, 'Thanks... I'll be seeing you around big guy." Naruto made way for the exit slowly and was finally out of the shop.

"Indeed."

* * *

**Present:**

Naruto walked around to cool himself down after sprinting 50 laps of the Fire Country. He made his way towards a tree to do his 1000 pull-ups, later, 1000 sit-ups and push-ups as well.

* * *

**Past:**

There was a faint dull knock coming from the Hokage's office door. He admitted the person. The Sandamine heard wild and heavy panting fill the room and to the old man looked up to the see the Kyuubi vessel practically dragging himself into the room.

The blond boy wheezed and collapsed on the floor as though he ran 50 laps of Konoha, "Hey... old... man... can... you... you... sign me up... for the ninja academy?" He said with great effort trying to catch his breath with a grin on his face.

**AN: **Thank you for surviving the first chapter! Okay, Naruto's seems pathetic at first but he's going to be a strong kid later on... I hope... I'll be talking about Naruto's past first for the first few chapters but later on it will follow somewhat along the original plotline with some minor changes...


	3. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Naruto was never mine, never was, never will... sob

AN: Thank u so much for the reviews, as u can tell i luv reviews, flame or nice... makes a better writer of me... plz enjoy this chapter!

Chapter 2:

**Past:**

The Sandamine raised an eyebrow, "You want to attend the ninja academy this year?"

Shakily, yet a bit more sturdy, Naruto raised himself off the ground and grinned at the Hokage, "Ah... because I'm going to take over your job old man, so you better watch out."

Sarutobi rested his chin onto his hands, "Very well, I will inform the instructors there to prepare for your enrollment."

"Arigatou, ojii-san!" Naruto answered gratefully.

**Present:**

The newly appointed ANBU collapsed onto his bed and took several moments to look at the stars from his window, realizing how far he came in just a couple of years. He rolled off the bed to take a shower and get some sleep.

**Past:**

Sarutobi looked at the profile of the sensei that was to teach Naruto's class and half-smiled. It was a middle-aged woman who was to teach this year's class. She held no grudge against Naruto and was one of the few who knew that the Kyuubi and the boy are separate beings. The only downfall was that she hardly let students pass the Genin exam. She was very strict and demanding, she could even rival with Morino Ibiki as a torturer. _Naruto is going to have a hard time_, The Sandamine thought.

The next day, Naruto recieved news that he would start at the academy in a few days. Last night, he had stayed up late planning on what kind of training he would do when he wasn't in the academy, "One year, ka?"

**Present:**

Naruto walked into the Hokage's office with his new ANBU mask on to receive his very first mission. The Sandamine handed him a folder and briefly explained its' details. "This is a long-term undercover mission to protect a certain person. Uchiha Sasuke. His clan was-"

"- murdered by his brother, Uchiha Itachi, a year ago." Naruto finished. "I'm guessing we're all afraid that someone would come back and finish him off, ending the bloodline- minus Itachi."

The Sandamine nodded, hiding his surprise, _I now see why he was chosen as an ANBU not only because of his skills but also his intelligence._

"So... you want me to enroll in the academy in the same year as the Uchiha to keep an eye on him?" Naruto inquired thoughtfully.

"Hai, you can act however you want, just don't let anyone know you're an ANBU." The Hokage said, not knowing in later years he'd regret saying that.

The ANBU nodded, "Will I get other missions while I'm doing this one?" He asked, waving the folder.

"Of course."

"Okay, can I go now?"

"Yes."

"Ja, old man." Naruto 'poofed' his way out and continued his ideas for a different identity.

**Past:**

He stepped inside the classroom to find some other students glaring at him as they whispered to each other. Naruto shrugged it off and continued to an empty seat beside the windows. After he was seated, the class resumed its' rowdiness with yelling and shouting. Paper airplanes and garbage were thrown at Naruto's direction but he ignored it, dodging each one.

"SILENCE!" Everyone immediately stopped what they were doing and looked towards the front of the class and saw a woman in her 30s. She was obviously not happy with the class's behaviour, "Anyone talking without my permission will immediately get detention or get kicked out of the academy." She said in a deadly tone.

Some kids whimpered while others got back into their seats quickly, "I am Uchiha Nawata; I will be your sensei this year. I want discipline in this classroom! So if I see any misbehaviour..." She scanned the classroom with intense eyes, "... You'd wish you'd never step foot into this academy." Most of the students had frightened looks on their faces however, Naruto remained expressionless having received one too many threats before. "Ninjas should never allow their emotions to be shown to others in any situation." Students attempted to write it down for notes but their sensei barked at them, "I want you to remember, not rely on notes. I will be quizzing you next day. So you better pay attention!" She grabbed a pile with a list of instructions on it and handed it out- more like threw- in front of each student, "Go ahead and do what the sheet says, but I warn you... Read carefully." Ruffles of the papers were heard when they picked up the papers. After 3 seconds, nearly everyone got up and went around greeting each other, then doing push-ups, etc. Naruto remained where he was, still reading the sheet.

"Geez, what a slow reader." One of his classmates said with a smirk; others laughed and continued following the instructions. However, Nawata was staring at the whiskered boy. Once everyone were back at their seats did Nawata start evaluating.

"That was pretty pointless." "What was all that about?"

A glare from the sensei told them to shut up, "Maa, this was a test to evaluate your analyzing skills... therefore, I've conducted that everyone fails!"

"Nani!"

"Usou!"

A dark-haired boy stood up with a disgruntled look, "Neh, we've done everything that you've written on the paper, how do we not pass?"

Nawata suddenly appeared behind the boy and leaned in on him, "Did I not say not to talk without my permission?" The boy was trembling as the woman walked away.

She lifted up the instruction sheet and read aloud the writing, "#1. Read through this list and follow what it says."

"But we did do all that stuff you told us to do!" A girl blurted out. An eraser was thrown at her and she ducked in time.

Nawata went down to the last instruction and interpreted it, "#30. After having read this list, remain in your seat and wait for further instructions." The students were at a lost not being able to pinpoint their mistake. Naruto was looking out the window, staring wearily at the clouds. "Clearly, you guys didn't even read the whole list and just followed what the second instruction stated."

No one dared to say anything.

Nawata pointed at Naruto, "You!" Naruto, sighing, glanced away from the window and focused at the sensei, "Explain to me why you didn't move from that seat."

All eyes turned to look at him, "I don't know." The kids laughed at his stupidity while Naruto merely shrugged and went back to gazing out the window.

Nawata laughed inwardly,_ So this is the Kyuubi vessel... interesting_. "If everyone had read the list, all of your butts would not have moved from its spot. A hand was shot in the air, "Yes?"

"So, basically there are only 2 instructions. To read the list and then remain seated." The boy had bright green eyes.

Nawata smirked, "At least one of you get the sense of what's going on." The boy having gotten the answer, smiled proudly at himself. The confused faces broke out and everyone praised the green-eyed boy. "Don't be so proud of yourself just yet." The class broke into a silence again, "Now let's move on to chakra control..."

Naruto consumed all of what Nawata was saying and watched her perform a few simple jutsus. In his eyes, the hand seals movement seemed very slow allowing him to memorize it immediately. A poof of smoke came up beside her and an exact clone of her appeared. Sounds of fascination was heard throughout the classroom. Nawata grinned and the clone 'poofed' and disappeared. "If you want to do these types of jutsus then you'd have to channel and control your chakra, which will require a lot of concentration." Some kids groaned that earned them a devastating glare. The bell rang and the students sighed in relief; about to take off for break Nawata stopped them, "Who told you can be dismissed? There will be no break for today, go outside for the Taijutsu lesson."

"Heh?!"

(AN: I remember I did that test a couple years ago and i totally failed... shows how smart and observant I am... heh hehe sigh)

**Present:**

Naruto was standing in the clothing store with a deep serious concentration shown on his face, _What should I wear...?_ He strolled down the rows of clothings and something bright and colourful caught his eye, "Hehe... now that is what an idiot would wear!" Other customers turned to look at Naruto taking off an orange jumpsuit from the rack. He ignored the scowls and the stares, his face in a wide grin. _Now this is a jumpsuit that cries "Kill me!" to my enemies. This is perfect._ He went up to the cash register who treated him respectfully, in his mind finally thanking Kami-sama that someone finally bought the hideous, bright, orange, jumpsuit.

**Past:**

Naruto collapsed onto his bed and sighed. He had already been attending the ninja academy for a week and it bored him endlessly. He sighed and cringed when he sat back up having gotten more weights just 2 days ago. With tedious studying and training he was already able to master the Bunshin no Jutsu with Henge no Jutsu along the way. Students avoided him, but he preferred it that way. It seemed that the green-eyed kid's name from the first class was Tai. Stuck-up and arrogant made the girl's eye the 10 year-old with admiration. He was said to be the top student in the class, but Naruto hardly took notice since he always stared out the window.

With the weights on, Taijutsu classes were a bit more challenging but Naruto knew that he'd be able to pull through. However, what confused Naruto slightly was the fact that handseals, Taijutsu moves etc. seemed to be played very slowly in his eyes. He wasn't complaining or anything, just curious. He also has a feeling that Nawata was keeping a close eye on him.

**Present:**

Naruto checked himself out in a full-sized mirror with his new clothing on. He had to admit, they were pretty hideous, yet... different. He rubbed his chin, sensing that something was missing. Something glinted in the corner of the room, _So that's what I'm missing..._

**Past:**

Naruto jumped right on the stool of Ichiraku's Ramen, sweat pouring down his face after the cool down from his training, but he wiped it off quickly. "Miso ramen, oji-san." He ordered casually, having been there practically every morning. A steaming bowl was immediately placed in front of him. "Wow... haiyai..." Naruto stared at the ramen.

The chef propped his hands onto his waist looking very proud of himself, "Heh, don't think I don't know what my best customer likes to eat every morning, gambade."

Naruto gave him a wide soft grin, "Thank you, oji-san!"

The chef laughed, "Just as long as you keep eating here!"

"Of course!"

(AN: The training that Naruto does in the morning, is his own- so after his morning training he then goes to the academy)

Several Months Later:

"Everybody hand in your homework from yesterday!" Nawata demanded at the end of class, "And those who didn't do it, 500 push-ups." Students quickly placed their detailed plans on top of each other, having learned they could get kicked out for not doing homework. The class was nearly cut in half, some students expelled, some withdrawing fearing the sensei. Nawata pointed to a girl, "Summarize what we did yesterday."

The girl gulped and stuttered a bit, "Ano..." They would get detention if they don't remember what they did previously, "... We studied how to make a strategic plan for a variety of missions."

"If you can't even plan out your missions, then you're just an idiot looking for a short-cut to death! Understand?!" She barked at them.

"Hai sensei!" They chorused; the girl who answered sighed in relief.

"Tomorrow is the Genin exam, so those whom are participating better be prepared! Dismissed!" The class gathered their things up and got ready to leave to their afternoon lives.

Nawata was collecting the homework when she felt a presence in front of her, "Sensei, why did you reject my entrance form for the Genin exam?" Blue eyes pierced through her gaze.

Nawata folded her arms together, "What makes you think I should let you?" She studied his face, which seemed to be glazed with a proud amount of confidence.

"Because I know I am capable of passing it." He said firmly and stared up at his sensei.

She sighed, "Naruto... not only are you the youngest but your grades aren't that impressive, and you've only been to this academy for half-a-year. You're not ready." She went back to gathering up the papers, hesitating for giving him a not so sturdy answer. Indeed he was the youngest but his grades were at the top of the class.

For a while, he watched her, "But you know I can."

She paused.

Naruto had noticed that Nawata had been watching him ever since the first day.

She eyed him suspiciously, "Why do you want to take this test so badly?"

He didn't want to reveal that he had made a deal with an ANBU, "I want to be acknowledged and become Hokage one day." Determination struck his face and he seemed to mature at that instant.

Nawata wanted to laugh out but his look kept her place. After a long thought she smirked, "I'll see if you can then."

Hinting that as a note for leave, Naruto bowed, "Arigatou gozaimas!" He said huskily and left immediately afterwards.

Nawata frowned slightly when he left, _Did he notice I was watching him the whole time?_ Flipping through the homeworks. She isolated a page and looked at its contents. The planned diagram was simple yet effective, with labels of directions and instructions, the plan would grant a team who was following it, instant victory. _This diagram is at the possible level of a Chuunin_. "I'll see what you can do..." She placed the paper down, "Uzumaki Naruto."

**Present: **

Naruto adjusted the glinting goggles on his head and faced the classroom where he would have to attend for some years to come, "Here we go..." He slid the door open and faces turned towards him. _I did not miss this place at all._

A Chuunin glanced at him and smiled, "You must be Naruto-kun." Naruto nodded and studied the man's face where a long scar ran across his nose and both cheeks; his hair was tied up in a feather-duster ponytail and his eyes bore kindness. "I'm your sensei Umuino Iruka, would you like to introduce yourself to the whole class?"

Naruto made a mischievious grin and turned towards the class, "I'm Uzumaki Naruto..." With a booming voice he shouted, "... And I'm going to be Hokage one day, so you better not look down on me!"

The class remained in a stunned silence while his new sensei gaped at his introduction, the whole class erupted in laughter, "What an idiot!" "He has no shame at all!" "I somewhat feel embarassed for him!" Naruto scratched his head, _Sigh, this will be interesting._ He saw his mission target sitting in the center of the room where some girls blushed when they saw him. _What an arrogant looking guy_... Cold onyx eyes focused on his and within a split second glanced away. _I somehow already don't like you... Uchiha Sasuke._

After class, Naruto strolled down a road leading to a stone engraved with names. Calloused fingertips ran across specific kanjis, "You know what sensei?" A small smile revealed on his face, "Iruka-sensei is no where near your treacherous lectures and trainings." He placed a single flower down and turned to walk away, "But... maybe it's for the best."

The setting sun reflected upon the name... Uchiha Nawata.

AN: Yay! You survived the second chapter (Pretty long)! I made Naruto's personality somewhat like Shikamaru "Too lazy to even lift up his pencil to write the test". I really have no idea how the whole enrollment thing works but I'm sure that they have Genin exams every 6 months or so... I think... Correct me if I'm wrong... Oh and the OC characters are temporary they won't come out in later chapters... I believe...


	4. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: "Yes, my name is Masashi Kishimoto" Kishimoto-san would say, but I would say, "No, Naruto is not mine."

AN: Sorry for the late update. Once again, thank you so much for your reviews!!! ill try my very best to make a great story for y'all! Now for chapter 3!!!! To BakaHammerGirl and everyone, don't worry the Past and Present thing will eventually become less frequent... ill try my best to do so. Thank you for your patience!

Chapter 3:

**Past:**

"Uzumaki Naruto, you're next!" Naruto walked over to the door that burst open revealing a very angered and flustered Tai.

"Aw, Tai, how did you do?" His fan girls surrounded him with worried looks; he merely pushed them away and stormed off.

Naruto couldn't help but notice a minor graze on his shoulder. He pushed the door open and saw two instructors inside. One of them being Nawata the other sneered at the sight of Naruto.

"We'll get straight to the point..." Nawata said clearly being of the highest authority in the room, "... make four Bunshins combined with the Henge Jutsu in the form of the Hokage."

Even to Naruto, he found this very demanding but he brought up his hands to perform the required jutsus. About to start he heard the other instructor make a statement, "Just give it up demon!" He growled.

The two other beings in the room ignored him. Nawata frowned a bit, thinking she'd see a disheartened four year-old, but quickly changed her mind when Naruto continued the exam. His tiny hands maneuvered swiftly into the handseals and without saying anything a cloud of smoke surrounded him. When the smoke cleared, four pairs of wrinkled eyes stared back at the instructors. Nawata didn't show any new emotion on her face as her partner nearly collapsed off his chair. A puff of tobacco smoke escaped the newly created Hokages.

"You may return to your original form now, Naruto." Nawata instructed. The three Bunshins disappeared and Naruto appeared again. "Now for the-"

"Sumimasen Uchiha-san, but allow me to explain the second part of the exam." The man interrupted with a glint of hate reflected in his eyes.

Nawata thought it over, "Very well, Takesan." She leaned back in her chair.

Takesan stood up and walked around to the front of the desk, before Naruto, "Now for the second part of the exam is to test... YOUR REACTION!" He threw a kunai at Naruto.

The weapon whistled in the air as it sliced its way towards Naruto. The distance between them was not long, thus the time it took to reach Naruto was less than a second. The kunai embedded itself in the blond's forehead; blood trickled down from the wound. Takesan hysterically laughed as he watched the four year-old fall to the ground. "Ha, ha! You deserved it demon!" The unmoving boy suddenly disappeared in a blank of white mist replacing him with a log.

"Nani?!" The man's eyes bulged out.

"I'm so glad that sensei has so much confidence in my skills." The voice dripped in mild poison.

Takesan turned around to see Naruto standing there unharmed. "Kuzo..."

"Naruto!" The blonde turned to Nawata. A glinting metal object was thrown at him.

Naruto looked down at the newly given hitai-ate as it glinted in the minimal sunlight within the room. He bowed deeply, "Arigatou sensei."

She made no sign to respond, Naruto left.

"Utade Hime, you're next!" They waited for the next participant to come in as Takesan mumbled curses at Nawata as he sat down. "You'll be hearing about your consequences from today's actions, Takesan." Nawata warned him.

"..."

Naruto, feeling proud of himself, decided to go celebrate at Ichiraku's.

"Heh, Naruto, you seem to be in a very cheerful mood today!" Teuchi said with a big smile.

"Yup, that's why I'm celebrating with a bowl of-!"

"-Miso chasu omori!" Both Ayame and the owner chorused. Naruto dropped his mouth open in shock. "Ora, this one's on the house." His eyes started to water.

"Arigatou! Itadakimasu!" Happy slurping could be heard inside the shop.

**Present:**

Night time fell upon Konoha and Naruto, in his ANBU gear accompanying a jutsu that changed his hair colour, arrived in the Hokage's office. Besides the Sandamine, three other figures occupied the room clothed in the same way as Naruto.

"Ah, the last member of Squad Three." Sarutobi partially introduced.

The three other members turned, adorning masks with a snake, monkey and dog. "All four of you are now assigned as Squad Three." No one spoke as they kept scanning each other, "If you'd like, maybe you four can introduce yourselves." The Sandamine suggested nervously, sensing the tensity inside the room.

One shrugged and made way to take off their hebi mask, "Mitarashi Anko." Her voice was low and not very ladylike, purple hair occupied her scalp.

Another shifted and the inu mask was removed from the owner's face, "Kamikuzi Izumo." Hair covered his right eye and he looked somewhat ordinary.

"Shiranui Genma." The saru's mask's owner revealed a man who seemed to be the oldest of the other two. A bored expression was displayed on his face and, magically, a toothpick somehow found its way into his mouth.

The three looked towards the final and shortest member, Naruto sighed, "Uzumaki Naruto." As he removed his kitsune mask, his hair turned from brown to bright, golden yellow.

_Uzumaki..._ They looked at the ANBU in front of them,_ ... Naruto?_ They all thought at the same moment.

Silence paused the room.

"He's pretty short, ano chibi." Eyes shifted to the woman, "At least I'm not the shortest one in the squad." She said in a matter-of-fact tone.

Naruto was trembling and burst out, "Uruse! I'm still not done growing, unlike you!" He said with twitching eyes.

"Heh, I can't hear anything, maybe because you're too short for us to hear, gaki!" Anko spat back with a grin.

"Teme..." Naruto growled, clearly not liking it when people says something about his height. Anko smirked, sensing the challenge.

The other beings in the room- if they remembered that they were there- sweatdropped as the two new squad members cursed and argued back and forth with each other. _How mature,_ they thought sarcastically.

Finding it rather pointless to wait for them to stop bickering, Sarutobi made the effor to clear his throat loudly. Taking one last menacing look at each other, they turned to face the Hokage with calm faces. "Since you are a new squad, I won't place you in S-class missions yet to be accustomed to each other." The ANBUs made no effort to complain or argue, finding the explanation to be quite reasonable. "Now for the first mission..." And the meeting went on for a while longer.

**Past:**

Ramen aroma filled his sense as he dug into his food. "Why if it isn't ochibi." Someone sat beside him, "A bowl of miso ramen, oji-san." He said warmly to the chef.

"Tousen, Nozue!" Teuchi smiled and got to work.

Naruto felt himself staring at the man with spiky, silver hair. The man- with his hitai-ite covering both eyes- took a sip of tea and sighed, "You know it's rude to stare." His voice sounded very familiar...

"Heh! You're that-" Naruto said in an outburst, jumping up from his stool.

"Miso ramen! Thank you for waiting!" A bowl was placed in front of the man whose name was said to be Nozue.

"Hai! Arigatou Teuchi!" Nozue picked up his chopsticks eagerly. Naruto, still in shock, sat back down onto his stool. "What were you saying kid?" Naruto looked up at him.

Naruto grinned and fished his head protector out from his pocket, "Like you said, I get this hitai-ite in less than a year (6 months) and then you'll teach me some things."

The man stared- if he could- at the glinting metal, "Hm?"

Naruto was bobbing up and down in anticipation when he saw the man laugh, "Rule #1 kid..." He threw money down on the counter, "... Don't trust strangers." He left.

Naruto tried to run after him but Teuchi had him by the collar to pay for his food. He mumbled curses as he paid the chef.

**Present:**

Blood was sprayed on the ground as the four ANBUs finished up their mission on a group of convicted killers that had escaped their cells.

"It's ironic isn't it? We murdered the murderers." Genma stated solemnly.

"Whatever, they're the ones who brought it upon themselves." Anko said carefreely.

Naruto just glanced at the corpses and tried to get the smell of blood away from his nose, _Haven't smelled this in a while... I hate it..._

"Mission accomplished. Who wants to write the report?" Genma announced boredly. No one answered.

Izumo felt that he was being targeted by all three of his teammates, "Fine, I'll do it." He surrendered.

"We'll take turns writing it." Naruto offered.

"Yeah, I just don't want to write the very first report." Anko pitched in.

"I have messy writing." Everyone sweatdropped.

"We don't mind, besides, that would be the Sandamine's problem then." Anko said evilly, the others agreed. Genma shrugged his shoulders in defeat.

**Past:**

"Oi Tessai!" Nozue stepped inside Techou's weights greeting the owner.

Squinting through his sunglasses, he spotted the man and revealed a wide grin, "Nozue! Finally came back from your mission?"

Nozue leaned down on the counter and returned the grin, "Yeah I guess... how's business?"

Tessai's glasses reflected the empty shop, "It's going great! Business is booming!" He said enthusiastically.

"Hasn't changed has it?"

"Nope." The big guy's head drooped.

"Sorry big guy, didn't mean no harm in saying that." Nozue patted the man's arm firmly.

"I'll let it slide this time since you're here to pick up the tab right?" Tessai laughed with Nozue, whom was laughing also.

The ANBU stopped midway and looked at the owner confusedly, "What tab? I don't owe you anything."

"Oh," The man ducked behind the counter and fetched a piece of paper, "Actually it's Naruto who has the tab, that's why I'm having him come here to clean up the place today."

"Why does he have a tab in the first place?" Nozue questioned as he received the paper and read its contents, "For weights?" Tessai nodded, "But I thought I already paid for his extra weights and everything."

"Yes you did, but he's already using the weights you paid for and he still needed more." The Techou's shop owner pushed his sunglasses up.

"A year's supply?" The owner nodded, "You're kidding right?" Before Tessai could answer the door opened and Naruto walked in with a bored look on his face.

"Neh Tess-san, what do I have to do today?" Naruto looked at Tessai and saw him with another familiar figure, "Hm?"

"Oi gaki," Nozue turned to Naruto, "Show me your weights."

"Heh? Why should I do that?" Naruto frowned.

Thinking of a quick excuse he answered, "Or I won't teach you anything."

Hearing this, Naruto quickly showed him his wrist, ankle and body weights. "Why do you need to see the weights?" Naruto asked excitedly.

"Hn..." Nozue turned to Tessai, handing him Naruto's tab while mumbling something, "Ja ne, Tessai!" He passed by Naruto, "Sayonara chibi." And he was gone.

"What was all that about?" Naruto mumbled.

"Catch Naruto!" The 4 year-old turned in time to catch a rag and a bottle of window cleaner, "Have fun!" Naruto dragged himself to the windows missing the mischievous grin.

Hours later:

"Tess-san, just a curious question," Naruto began to ask, "How many more times do I have to come here?"

The big guy went rigid, "Eh... you see..." He scratched his head nervously, "Nozue already paid for your tab." He attempted to say it quickly but Naruto caught the words.

"Nani! You made me-" Naruto began to yell but Tessai interrupted.

"- Before you continue, he told me to tell you that he'll be meeting you by the lake at 6PM today." Tessai told the child who threatened to mess up his shop.

"Wha-?" The kid grabbed Tessai's wrist to look at his watch, "Heh?! 5:55!" He sped off without another word.

The man chuckled as he got back to his "work".

**Present:**

"Not bad for your first mission." The Hokage had examined Squad 3's report and was very satisfied. The ANBUs didn't respond containing their calm composures. "The next assignment will be much more challenging, so get a good night's rest, all of you." He gave them a small smile.

"Hai." After they were dismissed, the ANBUs went their separate ways with one remaining. "Is there something you want to ask, Kitsune?"

"Is it possible for me to see Mizuki's files?" Naruto asked pretty straightforwardly.

"Mizuki? The academy instructor?" The mask nodded, "Why?"

The ANBU sighed, "I'd be lying if I said I wanted to know when his birthday was, but it's for a reason that I can't confirm till I see his file."

Sarutobi studied the person in front of him. With a puff of smoke, he opened his drawer and took out a file he recently mulled over. "When you're finished-"

"- in three minutes, I'll return it to you nice and safely." Naruto said with a smirk.

There was a knock on the door. "Come in." Naruto stood on the spot to look through the information. A man with silver and spiky hair- not Nozue- pocketed an orange book as he came in through the door, "Ah, Kakashi. What brings you here?"

"Nothing." He spotted a figure looking through some files, "Who's the shortie?"

'Pissed off' marks appeared at the side of Naruto's head. "Oh, he's one of the new ANBUs." Sarutobi sensed the vibe coming from the child and tried to warn Kakashi, "You really shouldn't-"

"-ANBU? If I can remember clearly, even Anko is taller than him-" Kakashi said in a thinking tone, not realizing that the ANBU was only 9 years-old.

The folder trembled with irritation, "-At least I don't cheat my height using my hair. What, do you stick your hair into a tub of gel every morning, 'cause it at least makes up for half of your height?!" Naruto asked in a dangerously "nice" voice.

They both glared at each other. "What's your problem?" Kakashi asked "kindly", _He dissed my hair_.

"What is _your_ problem?" In a split second they were on opposite sides of the office.

"Huh, I see you're reading Mizuki's file." The folder was now in the silver-haired man's hand.

"And you're reading some, rather, perverted book." The orange book Kakashi held so protectively was now in the ANBU's hand. _I remember Nozue-sensei reading this... closet pervert._

"Give that back or I'll burn this file of yours." Kakashi threatened, waving the folder around, eyeing his prized book sorefully.

Naruto grinned. He lifted the book up to eye-level, "You burn that, I'll burn this."

_No! That's a limited version! That edition is already sold out. _"Fine... why don't we just give it back to each other together?" They both made their way to the center of the room with a sweatdropping Hokage witnessing. Clearly they have forgotten about him.

The hostages- file and book- were handed out as the owner grabbed them, then realizing neither of them wanted to let go. "First you have to take back what you said before about my height." Naruto growled.

"Same to you for my hair." Kakashi replied with a glare. Sarutobi could only think of how stupid the two of them looked at the moment.

The grip was tight in both of their hands, not one of them willing to loosen up. _Take back my words?... No way. _Both thought at the same time.

"So you're not letting go?" Kakashi asked.

"Fat chance." The room erupted into flames.

After being scolded by the really pissed Hokage, both the singed Naruto and Kakashi parted ways, _Make sure I don't ever see him again_... They both thought with wild ideas of how to tear each other apart.

**AN:** Chapter 3! I know I made Kakashi a bit OOC and the scenario was very silly but I needed him to piss off Naruto, hehe.If anyone has read/watch FMA, they'll know i added some 'Ed' personality into Naruto- the shortness, hee hee. For my OC character, Nozue, he looks like Riku from Kingdom Hearts 2 (I dun care, i luv KH!)...


	5. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: If only Naruto was mine...

AN: Yay! Reviews (Happily cries and runs through fields)!! The update was slow this time, I admit...You've survived to the fourth chapter, yeah!!! Don't want to make kakashi a pedophile so the kaka/naru will slowly develop in due time... thank you for your patience... please enjoy the chapter!

**Past:**

Naruto, surprisingly, made it on time to meet Nozue at the lake. He didn't see the man anywhere till something made his ears perk up and he immediately turned towards the source. "I gotta say kid, you have got some pair of ears," Silver hair crossed his vision, "but, you're still nowhere near my standards." Naruto made a confused look but he shook it off.

"So what are we going to do today, Nozue-sen-?" Naruto said eagerly but was interrupted.

"Don't go calling me sensei just yet." The boy quirked an eyebrow, "I don't want to be wasting my time on a kid like you for nothing, so you gotta show me, in this one day, that you can convince me to accept you as a student."

Naruto's head was down, calculating the situation; he lifted his head up and smirked.

**Present:**

"NARUTO!" A dust eraser came flying towards him, hitting him squarely in the face.

"Itai...!" Coughing up the swallowed chalk dust, Naruto could make out Iruka's angered face.

Propping his hands on his hips, Iruka frowned, "If you don't pay attention in class, don't dream of passing the test next week."

"Mah... If only Iruka-sensei didn't speak in such a boring tone, maybe I could pay a bit more attention." He earned another eraser to the face as the class laughed at him.

"Naruto, you stay after class!"

"IRUKA-SENSEI!" The voice whined.

_Why do I have to come back here? It's so boring._ Naruto thought as he trudged up to Iruka's desk. _And that old man wants me to fail the tests in order to stay in the same class as that arrogant git._

Iruka saw the sullen look on his student's face and sighed, "Naruto, didn't you say you wanted to be a Hokage one day?" Naruto didn't reply, "That's why you must work hard in classes or else you'll never get to that stage..."

_Tonight's mission is going to be tough, but it's nothing that we can't handle. Maybe if-_

"Oi Naruto! Are you even listening to anything I'm saying?"

"Huh?"

Iruka clenched his teeth with eyebrows twitching, "Omai...!"

"Iruka-sensei, did you say something?" That did it. A beating could be heard. "ITAI!"

People stared at the customer on the stools as he happily slurped up his twelfth bowl of ramen. Along with him was a rather embarassed man with a scar across his nose.

"Mou, Naruto. Haven't you had enough already?" Iruka nervously asked the feasting child.

"Nope!" Iruka groaned, _Maybe I shouldn't have hit him that hard._

After 3 more bowls, with the bulging bruise on the top of his head, Naruto smacked his lips in satisfaction, "That was good" _I guess letting him hit me paid off._

"Of course. Since you don't need to pay for it." Umuino said through gritted teeth.

"Huh?"

"Iie, Iie." Iruka defended himself.

**Past:**

Nozue took out a bell and tied it to his waist, "Take this bell away from me and you pass." The bell teased him with its glinting metal, "You can use ninjutsus and taijutsu, anything actually." He informed the 4 year-old.

Naruto took a deep breath before Nozue shouted, "Hajime!" The man disappeared.

"Damn, he's fast!" Naruto jumped away in time to dodge his attack. Nozue vanished again. Regaining his balance, Naruto could feel his heartbeat pounding with excitement. _I can't find an opening to get in. And I don't have any weapons yet!_ He didn't have enough time to buy any shurikens or kunais, since he had to clean up Tessai's shop. Doing a couple of handseals, "Bunshin no Jutsu!" Two other Narutos stood next to him, "Ikuzo!" They hid in the trees and bushes.

Nozue stood still for a moment, "Okay, I'll play along." Naruto observed his handseal movements, "Kage Bushin no Jutsu!"

_Nani? Kage Bunshin?_ Naruto had noticed a different set of handseals but the results were the same, two other Nozues stood side-by-side. _Soka, he distributed the same amount of chakra among the three of them so I won't be able to sense which one is real... Shimatta! He can sense mine then! He's here!_ He rolled to the side and performed "Shinju Zanshu no Jutsu" And pulled Nozue down to the ground with only his head sticking out. It disappeared. "Damn! A clone!". Taking off his wrist and ankle weights, he charged out from the bushes.

"Hm?" Nozue spotted Naruto spring out of the trees, "What is he doing?"

Naruto placed his hands together and like he observed and memorized, shouted, "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

"Nani?! How do you know how to use Kage Bunshin?!" A startled Nozue backed away a bit, "Uso!" _How can he...?_ The smoke disappeared and 5 Narutos were grinning at him. _Ano gaki..._ "Hm. Not bad... But I'm still stronger than you at this point-!" He felt his body being pulled underground. _This isn't Shinji Zanji... Dochu Eigyo no Jutsu? This kid is... _He felt a tug at his waist... _incredible_. "Mada, mada!" He grabbed the boy and threw him into the lake. "That was close. Guess I better not underestimate you, gaki." (AN: Doton: Dochu Eigyo no Jutsu- Can allow a person to hide underground till they're ready to attack)

Naruto was sinking to the bottom, _So heavy... the weight..._ He fumbled at his clothes.

Nozue watched as the 4 year-old climbed out of the lake. The atmosphere felt heavy; without blinking he watched as the boy disappeared and the bell dangled in front of his face. "Mada, mada, ka?" The boy was dripping wet and had a small smile on his face. The bell was held between the boy's two fingers, glinting with victory.

"You took off the rest of the weights didn't you?" Nozue asked logically. Naruto grinned, "You cease to amaze me, Uzumaki, demo..." He lifted his pants, sleeves and shirt, "... don't forget I use weights also."

If only his jaw could allow him, it would've fallen to the dirt. "Ma-ma- masaka..." He scanned the ANBU up and down, "... and they're so much heavier too..." He clenched his fists, "... that means that wasn't your true strength."

"Tousen. One does not allow an opponent to experience thei full strength." He lectured the boy. To him, the boy seemed devastated.

"Then... then..." Naruto uttered, "... Then that's awesome!" His eyes brimmed with excitement, "Then it's so much more meaningful for me to surpass you!" He was filled with fiery determination.

"Uh, okay..." That broke the intense mood.

"What do you mean 'okay' I'm being serious right now!" Naruto bared his teeth with flailing arms.

"Right, whatever." Nozue shrugged nonchalantly.

"You're kind of pissing me off right now."

Nozue ruffled the boy's wet hair, "That's good. I gotta run kid, so... later!" He disappeared into the forest.

"Ja ne! Nozue-sensei!" Naruto shouted after him.

_Nozue-sensei... I like the sound of that._ Nozue could feel that it won't be a mistake taking Naruto as a student.

**Present:**

Naruto and his other teammates skimmed through the forest, their visual eyesights unchanging even in the nighttime. Their mission was much more serious and dangerous this time. Important document were to be sent in, not only the Stone village but also the Sound where it was rumoured where Orochimaru is dwelling at the moment. (AN: hint, hint) Konoha had Leaf ninjas acting as a spy in both villages disguised as Sound and Stone ninjas. They were to trade documents that night and a slip-up may just be their death wish.

During the meeting, Squad 3 was briefed.

"That's exciting." Anko licked her lips in anticipation. Naruto scanned the map that was placed on the table, he drew an invisible line of the border between the Fire country and Hidden Stone village with his finger. "Since there has always been a silent war between us, and that we are eternal rivals. The border here would be tighter than the other borderes connected to other countries and hidden villages."

Genma followed the trace, "Meaning security is heavy. If we go through here it's a definite that we will meet some stone ninjas, but..."

"... But we don't want to arouse the village and we don't want to create any more reasons to make the war actually happen. If we take another route our time would be tight." Izumo reasoned.

The group studied it a while longer, "I'd say go straight through the border." Naruto said with his arms crossed and calculating face.

"Why's that?" Anko demanded with a curious tone rather than doubting.

Naruto pointed to the other borders, "It's a definite that these borders would have security and it will take us an even longer time since we are also detouring." The others nodded, "We don't have to necessarily sneak through to avoid detection but rather-"

"- Use disguises." Genma finished.

Izumo stared at the map with his visible eye, "That means we can capture some of their ninjas to disguise as them."

"Exactly." Naruto grinned, "I also know of a way to distract the others..." They set up the plan.

**Past:**

"This year there is only one student who made it as a Genin, Uzumaki Naruto." Nawata recited.

"Uzumaki Naruto, ka?" The Hokage intertwined his fingers together, "I hear he's only been in the academy for 6 months. Isn't it a bit too early?"

"He's more than ready sir." She immediately replied.

"But there aren't enough Genins to put him in a 3 man team." The Hokage challenged the instructor.

"Someone could train him for the time being." Nawata stared at the Hokage seeking for an answer.

"Hokage-sama-" A knock on the door interrupted them.

"Oto, sumimasen Hokage-sama, you're talking with someone-" The knocker began to close back the door until...

"Iie, we're about finished." Turning to Nawata, he smiled softly, "I'll be looking for a suitable instructor for Naruto."

"Arigatou Hokage-sama." She bowed and abruptly left.

"You can come in now." Hokage ordered towards the door.

"Okay, so what's the mission?" Sarutobi jumped slightly when he noticed the person standing next to him.

"I still can't seem to get used to your stealth skills, Nozue." The Sandamine confessed.

"Since he's been practicing in the women's baths..." Someone mumbled in a joking manner.

"Oi, oi, that's you ero-sennin." Nozue corrected the white-haired man standing in the center of the room.

The man's face twitched, "Ero-sennin?"

"Well you are the most perverted man in this room and don't forget this guy." Nozue patted the Hokage's shoulder whom is seen with a tinge of blush.

A man walked into the room with an alert presence. "Oh Kakashi!" Nozue said in surprise, "You're early today?"

"Huh." He simply replied.

Nozue sighed and joined the other two men as the Hokage briefed them of their mission. By the end of the meeting, they were given a file to hand to the Tsuchikage. Nozue turned to the other two, "When should we set off?"

"Since the Stone village is a couple hours away, I think it's best to move at night to attract less attention." Kakashi stated monotonously.

"Agree." The toad sennin said, "Best time around 8pm."

The other two nodded and decided to meet at the front gate. After receiving the file, Kakashi and Jiraiya left first. "Later ero-san!" Nozue waved and swiftly disappeared.

_I am not a pervert_, the Hokage denied hoplessly.

**Present:**

The earpiece buzzed in his ear, "Ready." He whispered into the microphone. Three other voices replied with the same answers, "Narakumi no Jutsu." Hidden in the shadow of the trees, he watched his target start to wander away from his post. He jumped down to knock out the stone ninja. His target didn't struggle because of the jutsu. He himself transformed into the unconscious man. "Done." He spoke into the microphone.

"Okay then, gather to the spot." His teammate planned.

"Hai." He hid the man in the bushes near the post and he disappeared with monstrous speed.

Squad 3 gathered at the meeting spot with one of them disguised as a stone ninja. The three others morphed themselves into other new faces.

"Kitsune, you ready?" The stone ninja nodded. "Let's go." Naruto left them, while they traded looks.

"We have to look beaten up." Anko stated.

"I'll do the honours-" Genma eagerly said.

"We'll just add it to our jutsus." Izumo interrupted promptly. Genma frowned in disappointment.

Naruto sprang from branch-to-branch towards the captain of the border squads. Spotting him, he raced towards him, "Taichou!" The captain turned to him, "Intruders spotted in the East border!"

"How many of them?"

"We've spotted 3," Naruto acted out smoothly, "And they look strong."

The captain thought it through quickly, "You go inform the village," He ordered for some squads. "Intruders spotted at the East of the border. You know what to do!" He barked at them.

"Hai!" They all cried in unison including Naruto.

"Taichou!" The captain responded, "The intruders seem to have been beaten up." The ninja was led to an open clearing where 3 bodies laid.

He examined the bodies and eyes went wide for the bodies started to form into his own people that patrolled that particular area. "Wake them up!" His men went to do the task. _The intruders must have done this for a distraction._ Someone groaned. He grabbed the, now conscious, man. "What happened?!"

The ninja came out of the daze, "We were just patrolling till we spotted the intruders, and next thing we knew we were beaten up."

The captain threw him back to the ground, "Useless!" He found the others staring, "What are you all standing around for? Go find the intruders." The ninjas scrambled to search for the invaders. What was left were the 3 injured ninjas, "Hurry up and look for them!" He left.

"Geez, what an ass." Anko commented when she got up from the ground, "And I can't believe they are so gullible."

Izumo agreed.

"We just have to wait for Kitsune to finish at his side." Genma stated matter-of-factly.

Two documents traded and with small nods of the head they departed the opposite way. Naruto got back into his diguise and continued with the plans. "Package traded."

"Confirmed." The other three replied.

Naruto spotted the captain that he had first spoken to and approached him, "Taichou!"

"What is it now?!" The captain demanded furiously.

"When I was on my way to the village, other squads have reported that they have spotted 3 intruders leaving at the West border." Naruto lied to him effectively.

The captain stared down to the ground, "Is that so...?" Naruto nodded, "Call off the search! We'll just leave that other squad to deal with it!" He took off where he left Naruto with a surprised look on his face.

"Wow, they sure love doing their job." He said sarcastically and headed off towards his team.

**Past:**

Nozue met with his two other teammates and took off. Kakashi glanced at Asako Nozue, his original ANBU's squad captain. He had to admit, he looks up to the man. Spotting the border, they sped up.

"Two people following us." Kakashi noted. The others agreed.

Nozue did some handseals and turned around for a split second to release the jutsu. "Since we don't have enough time..." 3 replicas of each member appeared and ran in a different direction leaving a distinctive trail. "I bet they're gullible enough." The others smirked as they continued.

**Present:**

Squad 3 sped across vast forests and plains entering the Sound village to drop off their second document, which was very successful. "We must remain quiet on the way back, I've heard they're many ninjas who can listen on us easily without us even knowing." Izumo advised. With nods shown they proceeded to leave the country.

**Past:**

Successfully handing the document to the Tsuchikage the three man team left for Konoha. When they knew they were on safer ground they slowed down. "So Jiraiya, when's you're next book coming out?" Nozue asked eagerly with a grin. Kakashi shook his head sighing, "Honestly Kakashi, you should try his book sometimes. Makes you less stiff." He teased the young ANBU. Kakashi ignored him.

"Pft... he'll catch on soon enough." Jiraiya said confidently. This made Kakashi blush while the two older men giggled- yes, giggled.

**Present:**

"I sense chakra up ahead." Anko informed. _It's familiar_.

Genma felt annoyed, "Should we just avoid it?"

"Too late." Naruto said as he stopped, "He's here already."

"He?" Izumo stopped beside the youngest ANBU.

"Orochimaru."

AN: Sorry, i really don't know how to write up good fighting scenes and smart plans to attack someone :(... ill try my best to do better in the future chapters. There is a reason why Kakashi still hasn't gone into the habit of reading icha icha paradise, which will be explained in later chapters. The next chapter will be the final past/present dealy thing... i hope... and it will continue on the 'original' plotline with some 'minor' changes.. Thank you so much for your patience!


	6. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer**: If I owned Naruto i would've made Sasuke less arrogant and annoying...(no offense to sasuke lovers)

**AN:** Arigatou Gozaimas (deep bow) Reviews are what makes me keep going. Sorry for the long update. Kind of went away for a while... ill try to make the wait worthwhile... congratulations to everyone who has been patient and who has survived all the way to chapter 5!!! thank u very muchee for the reviews!!!! and this will hopefully be the last past/present thing!!!

"Orochimaru."

Anko snarled at the figure in front of them.

"Fufufu... What do we have here?" The snake sennin said mockingly.

"We have no intention to fight you." Izumo calmly said.

The snake-like man laughed, "I'm bored. Humour me."

"Geez..." Genma blew out. Naruto, however, remained silent.

Orochimaru ignored the statements and scanned them, "So... who'll be my first victim?" His tongue licked his lips in anticipation.

Anko was about to move forward but Naruto stepped up before her. He squeezed her shoulder lightly as if to tell her that he wanted to handle this man. Not knowing why, she nodded.

"Let's get this over with." Naruto said quietly.

The devil's face turned smug, "Nani? I'm fighting a brat?"

"What? Afraid you'll lose to me?" The 3 other ANBUs disappeared to a farther distance to let them have a more open area.

Orochimaru smirked and he pulled a sword from his mouth. With one sweeping movement the sword sliced the trees around them in half, which seemed very easy for him to do. Naruto remained still for a moment longer until he took out his Ninjaken that was strapped on his back and disappeared. "Hm." Orochimaru followed suit.

A slash was heard and blood dripped to the ground as the snake sennin reappeared with his left arm cut. "You're pretty fast, gaki." He admitted to the kitsune mask. The sword gleamed in the dying moonlight.

_Even the Hokage would have difficulty dodging that sword... _Genma thought solemnly... _be careful Naruto._ The two other ANBUs thought along the same lines.

Orochimaru was on the offensive at the moment and was backing Naruto against the tree. The ANBU managed to parry the attacks but failed to notice a bunshin coming from behind.

Shing The metal whistled through the air. Orochimaru grinned knowing that it was unavoidable.

Air hitched in their throats as they saw the youngest ANBU fall... and disappear.

"Is that all you've got?" A small, mocking voice carried through their surroundings.

Orochimaru looked to his right to see the ANBU has landed on the flat surface of his sword. "Impossible..." _There was no way he could have escaped that..._

_It's not a clone or Kawirimi no Jutsu... His speed is unbelievable!_ Izumo stared shockingly at his teammate.

Naruto was still. _I promised... I promised that I will surpass you... sensei..._

A bird chirped from a distance. Naruto looked towards the first few rays of morning creeping through the trees. "Next time," The snake-man looked at him, "send a more realistic clone." Throwing a shuriken directly to his head; Orochimaru got a glimpse of the murderous glare in the ANBU's eyes through the mask, before disappearing in a puff of smoke.

His team gathered with him, "How did you know that was a bunshin?" Anko asked.

Naruto looked at her... "Just a guess!" He turned towards the way they were to take to go back, missing the sweatdrops his teammate bore. _Iya, it was more than a bunshin, although it's incomplete... that was definitely sensei's-_

"Finally back." Izumo's voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Ah." Genma calmly said. Passing through the Konoha gates they immediately headed towards the Hokage's tower to report and hand over the documents.

"Oi Kitsune!" Anko sped up to him, "Just then, in that fight? You were pretty speedy, is that some sort of special move?"  
"Who knows..."

Anko clenched her teeth, "Oi, teme-"

"-Oh! We're almost there." Naruto sped forward and Anko swore that an evil grin was plastered beneath the mask.

**Past:** (Readers: Noooo!!! not the past/present thing!!!! AN:last chapter you'll be seeing these i hope)

Sarutobi handed him the folder, "This is the only kid who passed the Genin Exam this year." The man merely glanced at the contents within the folder, "Since there are no other teams that require an extra person, I want you to train him for the time being."

He closed the folder and smiled, "I'm surprised that you think I can handle this, ero-sensei." He felt the older man twitch, "Mah, don't worry, he'll be in good hands." He headed for the exit, "I'll see you later then, _Hokage-sama­_!" The man teased before a paperweight missed him. Nozue walked down the streets with folder in hand. _Seems like I'll be seeing you for a while, gaki..._

**Present:**

Naruto felt the hot rush of water glaze his body as he sighed. _I need more weights_. Stepping out of the shower and drying off, he heard a knock on his door when he was just about clothed.

"Iruka-sensei?" Naruto blinked a couple of times at the sudden visit from his sensei. "Why are you here?"

"You should be more polite to your teachers, Naruto." Iruka scolded softly. Blue eyes blinked, "I just passed by so I came up to check on you." He said a bit uncomfortably.

Naruto stared at his sensei for a moment before smiling, "Hontou?" He asked excitedly, his heart warming up towards his new sensei.

"Hai, hai." Iruka said as he matted the boy's golden hair down. "I'll see you tomorrow in class then." The sensei walked away, "Don't be late, Naruto!"

"Hai!" His voice echoed throughout the apartment halls.

**Past**:

A small circle was drawn around the 4 year-old. "Everytime you step out of this circle or get hit by an eraser, you'd have to run 3 times around Konoha." He instructed.

"3... 3... times?!" Konoha wasn't a big country but it isn't small.

"Sou." Nozue gathered a pile of erasers and tossed one and caught it in the air. "Dodge or get hit. No jutsus or weapons." He whipped it at the boy who dodged quickly.

In the midst of the flying erasers Naruto managed to ask a few words, "Am I allowed to catch them?" He ducked and jumped making him look like a ballerina with no sense of balance.

"Sure, if you can." Nozue increased the speed, having three erases thrown at the same time.

Naruto didn't have a problem at first but as his sensei's throws grew quicker, he was starting to be unable to catch up with the weights weighing him down. When the three erasers came at him, he didn't have time to dodge but catch with both hands and the last caught in between his teeth. What he didn't anticipate was a bunch coming immediately afterwards, hitting him and covering him with white dust.

"Mada, mada, chibi-ske." Nozue crouched down and grinned, "It'll take you 10 years to catch up to my speed." Arrogant but true.

Coughing up chalk dust, Naruto slowly stood back up and wiped the white sediment off his face, Nozue noticed the smirk, "Just give me half of that and I'll be at you level, no, even stronger than you, sensei."

"Really? Well, start by running..." He counted the white marks on the Naruto's clothing, "... 15 laps of Konoha." A white trail of dust followed a little boy running around the hidden village. _Sa... show me what you can do, Uzumaki Naruto._

**4 years later: **

Sarutobi read the report regarding Uchiha Shisui's supposed suicide from a week ago. "I'm sorry about your son's death, Nawata." He said ruefully.

Nawata took a deep breath trying to control her emotions. "Suicide my ass... why the hell would he want to do that?!" She spat at no one in particular.

"Uchiha Itachi." She whispered angrily.

The Hokage did not seem to hear her, "Pardon me, what did you say?" He, too, found Shisui's death to be murder rather than suicide.

"Uchiha Itachi. He faked the suicide." She accused coldly.

"Why do you say that?" Hokage wanted to know her reason to incriminate the 13 year-old ANBU squadron leader.

She sighed, "I've always respected the clan as well as Fugaku but... his son... I've been having this feeling he's up to no good." Hissed the instructor.

The Sandamine pressed his fingertips together giving him the image of someone in deep thought. "Sarutobi." He looked at her and was surprised to see the hurt and despair she bore in her eyes. "When Shisui's father died," She began, "I only had my son left..." Her hand was clenched tightly around the "suicide" note, "and now... he's gone."

"Nawata-" He was about to give her some consoling words but he noticed the emotions she held a minute ago was now gone.

"I request to capture and arrest Uchiha Itachi, Hokage-sama!" She said with an alerting seriousness in her tone. "Even if you deny this request, I will still continue." Knowing how he would react, she added, "This is not out of the emotions for the loss of my son but for the reason that Itachi has changed; he has been attacking members and voicing how the clan itself is hopeless. Although Fugaku doesn't admit it, he too knows that his son has become out of control."

Sarutobi walked to his grand window and watched as people still wore clothes of mourning for the loss of a talented ninja. He exhaled and finally spoke, "When?"

"Tonight." Nawata immediately replied, "I have already rounded some ninjas who has agreed to capture him with me."

The Hokage nodded. Before she left he said some final words, "Everyone has felt the pain of losing someone, including me. You are not alone." The door closed behind her, Sarutobi, missing the tears fall.

The leaves blew calmly as it swirled through the wind, one landing lightly ontop of a youth's hair. He didn't seem to mind or notice as he seemed more focused upon the figure several feet away from him, or not, since his eyes were blindfolded with a black cloth. A familiar circle was drawn around him as he waited patiently. In his sensei's hand were several kunais and shurikens, the metal glinted in the sun edging the man to throw them towards the boy. Using the wind as a distraction for sound, the man threw the weapons with a sharp speed. Within a breath's moment, the boy had visibily disappeared as the clinks of metals were heard, reappearing with shurikens returning to its owner while the kunais were caught in his fingers. The leaf from his head remained, seemingly undisturbed.

"Penalty." The man said at once, having had to dodge out of the way at the surprise attack, "Who told you you can attack, huh?"

"What?!" The 8 year-old had already yanked down his blindfold revealing cerulean eyes, "You get to throw whatever you want at me over these past years and I don't even get to do any payback!?"

Asako Nozue who stood with arms folded, shrugged. "That's your answer to everything, isn't it?" Naruto growled with annoyance. The man only smirked. It has been 4 years yet, so many things has happened in between and one of them was the discovery of the boy's power and potential. _If we didn't put a seal on him, there's a possibility he could have died by now. His body's too small -for now- to encompass so much chakra. _"What?" He missed what was spoken to him.

"What's the penalty?" Naruto asked lazily.

Nozue twirled his finger in a circle indicating laps, "15" Before he knew it, the boy had taken off leaving only a footprint in the dirt. To be honest, he was very proud of Naruto but he didn't want to show it because he didn't want the boy to become arrogant. In the past few years, he had not only become the boy's sensei but he also was a guidance. Naruto had the chance to become part of a Genin team but not a week later had the parents of the other two teammates complain of having a little boy, no less the "demon", to be with their kids. Nozue, thus, used his specialty skill to help Naruto gain experience working with others, which turned out pretty well. Not even 2 minutes he heard the arrival of his student once again.

Naruto didn't even seem to be out of breath, it was though the run was just a minor warm-up. "That's it for today, Naruto." Nozue announced. "I have meeting later." He explained briefly.

"Hai, sensei. Thank you for today's lesson." He bowed and left to rest for a bit, not knowing to his sensei that he would come back tonight to train and develop his skills, like every night.

Naruto splashed his face with water as he stared at himself in the mirror, with the image of a certain kitsune reflecting off in his mind. He had learned of the demon fox when he was 6. It wasn't an obvious discovery but he had felt the different aura that came off him when he was emotionally tried. After many persuasions, Nozue finally told him how he became the host for the nine-tailed demon. Naruto dismissed the idea of needing the fox's power because it was like a support, something he needed to rely on when endangered; only a year later did he realize that he was more dangerous and powerful than the Kyuubi itself. _I do hear it... the demon inside... calling out to me..._

After having dinner (instant ramen), Naruto took a stroll towards the lake to rest his stomach before doing his own training. He wanted to create a technique that allowed him to travel long distances that would usually take a day minimized into less than 30 minutes and that can allow him to be as quick as though stopping time. He was in the midst of practicing till something caught his attention.

The smell of blood. Lots of it.

He immediately sprinted off to where the source was. His breath was hitched in his throat when he saw numerous of bodies lying on the streets covered in blood. Doing a couple of hand seals, a bunshin came up beside him and ran to find his sensei. Quickly checking for any signs of life he ran through the streets with less hope of finding a survivor. About to enter a house, a hand caught his leg. He crouched down quickly hoping to see if he can save the wounded person till he saw through the blood on _her_ face. "N-N-Nawata-sensei!"

A gurgle sound came from her throat as though she was laughing, "Heh... (cough), it's you Naruto... you've grown haven't you?"

Naruto could feel her trembling as blood gushed from her wounds, "Sensei, save your breath I can heal some of your wounds!" He tried to stop her from speaking, having learned some small medical jutsus from Nozue.

She shook her head, "It's too late."

"What are you saying? It's never too late!" Naruto cried out.

She reached out to him, "I know my own body, Naruto." She gave him a weak smile.

He grabbed her hand, "Who did this?" He looked around the street of massacre, not even wanting to know how many more there are inside the buildings.

"I-I- Itachi..." She breaths came quicker and shorter. She grabbed him close to her, "D-don't look into his..." The grip loosened, "... eyes." And she fell back, life escaping her pupils.

Naruto knew she was dead. He didn't even know her all that well but she somehow seemed close to him. He closed her eyes and got up scanning the bloody scene. A figure flew by and he immediately knew it was the killer, and chased after him.

The Hokage had a grim expression when Nozue walked into his office that night. "What's up old man?-" He caught the Sandamine's eye and slightly frowned, "Not good?"

"He found out." He stored his crystal ball away safely.

Nozue sighed, "He's bound to find out sooner or later."

"He's coming for you right now." The Hokage could see the pause in the ANBU's movements. "He knows you're alive."

"Naruto... he's a good kid." Nozue said clearly ignoring the Sandamine's words, "Please, give him a chance."

Sarutobi gaped at the ANBU's attitude, "What are you say-?" The door burst open and Naruto entered with a terrified look.

"Th-the- the Uchicha Clan..." He stuttered, "Massacred." Both men immediately turned their attention towards the new situation.

"I'll head off first." Nozue said sternly as the Hokage made his way to rounding up other ANBU members. He smiled at him, "Take care, old-man." And he followed Naruto.

Uchiha Itachi stepped off a branch as he sped through the dark forest, finishing testing his newly developed abilities. He was to meet up with Hoshigaki Kisame right outside the border before they made their way to the Akatsuki organization. He heard a disturbance up ahead and stopped immediately to find himself facing a kid.

"So you're the Kyuubi vessel." He scanned the child from head to toe, "Not what I had expected. What's with the cold look?" His scarlet red eyes came upon Naruto's sapphire blues.

"They were you're family." The 8 year-old spat. He had always respected the, what was once, powerful clan.

"They were only _things_ to test my new power." Itachi merely stated, surprised he was wasting time talking to the kid. "This has nothing to do with you." He was about to take off when he noticed a kunai pressing against his throat. "Interesting. Unlike my pathetic brother, you have some skills up your sleeve." He began to activate his Mangekyo Sharingan when Naruto backed away avoiding eye contact. "So you've heard... Maybe from that pathetic woman who tried to arrest me."

"Uruse." He stared him in the eye, unafraid, "Don't go calling people pathetic when you've marked yourself one." With lightning speed he managed to cross out the leaf symbol on Itachi's hitaite. Doing some handseals, tattoo markings appeared all over his body, "Release!" Some of the tattoos disappeared as chakra came pouring out.

Itachi immediately fell on one knee as he felt an aura weighing down on him like a menancing creature. _What the hell is this?!_ _That kid... is not ordinary._

He wanted to avenge her. His mind was racing but it only remained on one thought. _Kill Uchiha Itachi._ As fast as his chakra came out, it dissipated. "Nani?"

"I was wondering what took you so long." A low voice rumbled from behind Itachi, a shark-like man appeared with a disapproving frown. "You were held up by a kid?" He had a zanbato rested on his shoulder as Naruto noticed that it was the source for the chakra absorption.

The newcomer suddenly appeared in front of Naruto that caught him off-guard. _He's fast!_ Next moment he was knocked out. "Should I kill him?" Hoshigaki Kisami said lowering the sword to the boy's neck.

Itachi, recovering from the chakra blow, stood up and walked over to where his future partner stood, "No, leave him." He watched as the tattoos re-drew themselves and disappeared. "We'll be back for him soon."

"Naruto!" Someone shook him. "Oi, chibi!" His eyes shot open and Naruto looked around wildly to see where Itachi was but he was nowhere to be seen. "Nozue-sensei..." He muttered.

"What the hell were you trying to do going after Itachi yourself?" Nozue asked with an annoyed expression.

Naruto didn't answer. He failed. He failed to kill Itachi. But he couldn't dwell long when he realized that both student and teacher were distracted by a sound.

"Go back to the village, Naruto." His sensei told him quietly.

"What?"

"Go now-!" Instantly, a kunai was embedded in his shoulder.

"Sens-!" For the second time that night he was knocked out cold.

Using the blood dripping from his wound he maneuvered his hands into different seals. "Joutou Bunshin no Jutsu." A double stood next to him. "Take Naruto and go back to the village." The clone nodded and left. Right when he left the area, several more kunais came after the clone. Nozue winced while his doppleganger continued without disappearing.

"I see you've used the skill that even fooled me." A slick voice came from the trees. "Pity, you've used up half of your chakra for that..." Orochimaru stepped out with Kusanagi in his hand, "... Asako."

Nozue smirked, "So it's come down to this." They both engaged into battle.

_Sensei... sensei..._ "Sensei!" They were near the village gates. "Wait! I have to go back!"

"No!" The Nozue-clone said sternly. "He doesn't want you to be there."

Naruto sharpened his glare, "Don't think that I don't know how to destroy you." The man looked down at him as if to say, "Try it, I dare you."

They were both panting and Nozue was closer to death than either of them. Managing to catch the snake-sennin in a hold he grinned, "I hope I don't go to the same place as you do." A grand explosion erupted.

A pang of panic ran through Naruto as he escaped from the clone and ran through the forest the way they came.

Orochimaru crawled himself out of a pile of ashen tree trunks with scalding burns. "Idiot. You think that could've finished me off." He groaned with the pain but he managed to get himself out of the Fire Country without another knowing.

"Nozue-sensei!" A tiny voice erupted in the burnt clearing, "Sensei!" Naruto arrived at the scene of damage and his hopes of finding Nozue alive was near rock bottom.

"Oii, ccchhiibbiii-sskkee..." Someone said with a sing-song voice, "Who told you to come back?" Naruto slowly walked up to giant tree trunk that had fallen ontop of his sensei. "This is rather a pathetic position for you to see me in." He said jokingly.

Naruto easily lifted the hunk of wood out of the way to see that his sensei was on his way... "What's with the grim face, gaki?" He tried to ruffle the golden hair but failed, "Huh..." He took a deep breath and sighed, "Somehow I knew that wouldn't finish him off."

"Who?" Naruto instantly asked.

Nozue laughed turning into a cough, "What? You want to go get some revenge or something... don't do that kid, it's not good... you'll be wastin' you're life." He quietly said. "Naruto."

"Hai, sensei?" He tried very hard to keep his voice calm.

"I know you can do it..." With each word it became quieter, "... Hokage... don't... don't give up... keep smiling..."

It was too quiet, and Naruto knew why.

He managed a small smile, "Heh... that position you're in, sensei... it's cool."

Weeks later:

A soft knock came at the door and Naruto walked in with some forms in his hand. The Hokage waited for the child to speak. "I want to join the ANBU squad." He handed him the filled out forms and waited for a reply.

Puffing smoke from his mouth he stared in the boy's eyes that showed no other signs of emotion besides determination_. Naruto... he's a good kid... Please, give him a chance. _The -now deceased- ANBU's words rang in his mind as he settled the papers down. "Very well. But I warn you, it won't be an easy path and your life may be at risk more than you are paid." He said seriously.

"Hai, I am fully aware of that." Naruto replied with a nod. Sarutobi went on with the description of the duties of an ANBU while Naruto's mind drifted off. _Sensei... I'm slowly catching up to your pace because I'm almost--------_

**Present:**

-------"Finished." Naruto stood erect and smiled, "I've finally finished it, sensei... Shunpo."

**AN**: Yes, ive killed off all my OC characters hoping to finally get into the main plot... very sorry to keep you waiting and i applaude for your patience. Im not sure if orochimaru uses kukuku or fufufu as his laugh...lol... sry if i made a mistake... dun worry there will be a more intense battle between orochimaru, itachi and naruto in later chapters. ive always liked the relationship between iruka and naruto the fatherly love and everything... so cute! of course Uchiha Shisui is not Nawata's son, i have no idea who his real parents are. If anyone has read 'Bleach', that's where I got Shunpo (Yoruichi's move) from, so it is not mine. More info of Nozue's Joutou bunshin no jutsu will come up later.


	7. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer**: No... sniff... Naruto isn't mine... Shunpo isn't mine either...

**AN**: Yeah! Reviews!! Luv them... helps me how you feel about the story so far... thank you. Heheheh... I didn't know that many people have used 'Shunpo' in their Naruto stories, sorry if there are some repeats :P Please enjoy!

**Chapter 6:**

Naruto was sitting on one of his favourite stools in Ichiraku's shop slurping up another bowl of ramen treated by Iruka-sensei once again. Iruka stared wearily at his student after a day's worth of trouble that included vandalising the monuments and knocking him out with his Sexy no Jutsu. It had been 3 years already since he first saw him enter his classroom... he had grown a lot, this kid.

"Eh... What's up with that look on your face, sensei?" His student suddenly asked him managing to talk with a mouthful of ramen in his mouth.

Iruka immediately looked away and muttered, "Nothing." He looked towards the pile of bowls in front of them, only one of them was his. "Are you done eating yet, Naruto?" The kid shook his head and he sighed thinking about his future empty wallet.

That night, after Naruto had finally finished, both student and teacher said their goodbyes and parted. It was late but Naruto still had another mission assigned for Squad 3. Storing enough food to get through the night, Naruto patted his stomach and raced to the Hokage's tower. Over the last 3 years, Squad 3 was slowly being well-known in Konohagakure for their number of successful missions and have listed off many ninjas from their bingo books, which included S-class ninjas.

He entered the Hokage's office, greeted by his teammates. "You're late, _taichou._" Anko said with a smirk clearly making fun of him. Naruto had been appointed - and was voted by the rest of his team- to be Squad 3's leader; as a choice, he chose not to wear the white cowls, instead wear the black ones, not wanting to stand out and to feel more comfortable among his teammates.

"Sorry, I was with Iruka." They knew about his double life a couple months after they had come together and many times he was delayed for that reason.

"It's all right, let's not waste any more time then." They all listened intently on the mission details.

By the end of the meeting, Sarutobi stopped Naruto from leaving. "I hear tomorrow's the Genin test." The ANBU captain nodded. "Do your best in passing it then." The Hokage was saying as though the test was the biggest thing ever.

"Uh... hai... about that-" Someone came in the room and cut him off. The Sandamine clearly had nothing else to say to him so he left.

Walking back to his dingy apartment place, he thought of what to do tomorrow. He had been observing Mizuki for a while and have learned that he was once a student of Orochimaru's, but that wasn't the main point. Instead he discovered that, being the stupid, loudmouth brat, he found the chances of Mizuki making a move on (using) him would be soon and he wasn't going to let that chance slip. _Okay then... I'll fail the test tomorrow!_

"Uzumaki, Naruto. You're next!" Iruka's voice rang from inside the classroom.

Naruto walked in without another thought and, sure enough, Mizuki was sitting beside Iruka, his childhood friend. Both instructors gave him a look to tell him to start producing his three clones. _I can't believe I have to concentrate on making a failed clone._ "Behold! A perfect double!" He yelled. A cloud of smoke blew up beside him revealing a dead clone.

"Fail!" Iruka immediately said after quickly observing the failed doppleganger.

"Iruka." Mizuki spoke for the first time Naruto was in the room. "He did manage to conjure up his other self-" Naruto blocked

everything he heard and concentrated on what to do next. Before leaving the room he had a believable angry glare staring up at Iruka.

Swinging on the old piece of wood, he waited for all the kids to leave ignoring the smirks and stuck-ups looks. He walked off wondering when Mizuki would find him. The sun was starting to set and Naruto hopes of Mizuki scouting him today was lowered-

"Naruto." He turned to see the instructor who had tried to get him to pass.

"Mizuki-sensei!" The smile on the man's face made him sick; he clearly knew that Mizuki hated him.

They were sitting on a platform at a building with Mizuki explaining why Iruka was so harsh... blah blah blah... "Let me tell you a secret... there's this scroll..." Naruto grinned inside. _Finally showing me some true colours... heh, I'll be paying a visit to the old man tonight._

Sarutobi trailed back and forth his home wondering why Naruto had failed. While talking to Iruka that day, the instructor mentioned how the 12 year-old had failed to conjure three clones for the Genin test. _What the hell is that kid doing? I told him to pass the test..._ He looked up to see a brightly smiling Naruto in front of him. "Naruto! What are you thinking of doing?-"

"Sorry, old man, I'll explain it to you later." Putting his hands together, "You'll enjoy this don't worry... Sexy no Jutsu!" The effect was immediate as the Hokage fainted with a massive nosebleed.

He ran out of the office knowing that Mizuki was keeping an eye on him and went towards the forest. "Maybe I can learn some new jutsus while I'm at it." He laughed as he settled himself on the grass. "Let's see what there is..."

Hours later, Naruto was staring up at the sky, all the jutsus in the scroll was nothing new to him. He heard someone approaching so he quickly tied the scroll to his back with a string. "Found you Naruto!" Iruka sprang out.

Acting surprised, Naruto laughed nervously, "I guess you did." He looked up at the kind face, "You'll have to let me graduate if I show you these techniques!"

"What?" Iruka was lost.

"Mizuki-sensei said that if I showed you the techniques that I learned from the scroll, you'd let me pass!" Naruto said carefreely. _He's here..._

"Mizuki...?" Iruka muttered before kunais came flying at them.

With two large shurikens strapped on his back, Mizuki had Iruka caught with his kunais. He turned to Naruto, "The scroll, give it to me, Naruto." The instructor ordered.

"Heh? Why should I?" Naruto asked calmly with Iruka shouting not to hand the scroll over to Mizuki at all costs.

The man scowled clearly just knowing that it wasn't going to be easy to get what he wanted. With a sly smile he stood up. "Heh, 12 years ago... do you want to know what _really_ happened when the demon fox was sealed?"

With Iruka's cries to stop Mizuki from telling him was proved futile but it didn't matter because Naruto knew what Mizuki wanted to say. "... because you are the demon fox!" The pale-haired man waited for a shocked little kid staring back at him but he nearly got knocked over by the serious look in the deep blue eyes.

"Yeah, so what are you going to do about it?" Naruto asked coldly.

Iruka was staring at Naruto from where he was standing with wide eyes. "Nani?" _How did he know about the Kyuubi?_

"W-w-what?!" Mizuki stuttered, he didn't know that his plan would backfire like this.

Naruto was still staring at the betrayer icily, "You've got it wrong." Mizuki winced. "I'm not the Kyuubi, I'm merely the vessel for it. They are two separate things, _so don't mix it up._" He said the last part quietly with the same effect as shooting shurikens at him.

_He's different... this Naruto... is different..._ Iruka thought astonishingly.

Regaining himself, Mizuki had an ugly grin, "What does it matter? I'll just finish both of you!" He unstrapped the large shurikens and threw it at both Iruka and Naruto.

"It's dangerous Naruto!" Iruka tried to make his way towards the child but he barely dodged the shuriken that was aimed towards him. The large shuriken embedded itself in the boy's body. "NARUTO!!!" Iruka cried out, shock going all over him.

"I won't forgive someone who hurts the people I care about." A voice growled beside Mizuki. Backing away from the Kyuubi vessel he looked from where the shuriken had struck Naruto, which was nowhere, and back to the one standing in front of him. "Taju Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" An amount of who-knows-how-many Narutos were developed effortlessly. "And I like to return the pain with more damage."

"No, no... AHHHH!!!" Mizuki's voice rang out from the forest.

"You'd be dead by now if I didn't have bring you in." Naruto said quietly only for the two of them to hear. Through the bruises and swellings he could tell that the man was scared. Without another look he jumped down to where Iruka sat, exhausted. "Iruka-sensei, daijoubu?" He could see that his sensei had only some minor cuts and grazes, nothing serious.

"Heh... some small injuries won't do me in." Iruka chuckled. He scanned the boy up and down who has now lost the seriousness he had a while ago. He smiled warmly at him, "You've grown... Naruto." He ruffled his golden fluffy hair. "Close your eyes, I have a present for you."

He felt something wrapped around his forehead, "You can open them now." Naruto opened his eyes and saw that his sensei had removed his hitaite and had given it to him. "Congratulations! You graduate!" Iruka said proudly.

Naruto looked down, overwhelmed with happiness. At that moment he just wanted to tell Iruka everything. About him being an ANBU and every little detail he can give. He got on his knees and bowed down, "Hontou sumimasen, sensei." The pain he felt when he couldn't say anything was unbearable.

"What's this?" Iruka asked slightly amused, "If this is about you knowing about the Kyuubi, then it's past me now." Naruto didn't move. "Get up now, Naruto. I'll maybe treat you to ramen- after I've checked my wallet- to celebrate this." He announced.

Naruto looked up happily and jumped on his sensei, "YEAH!" _Gome, Iruka-sensei..._

(AN: I'm going to skip the part where Naruto meets Konohamaru because it's basically the same.)

Naruto easily fell asleep at his desk, on the day they were seperated into teams of three. He had stayed up all night thinking of a plan for tonight's mission. It was almost endless, the missions for Squad 3 were pouring in; they had all agreed that if there was a mission during the day he'd use a Joutou Bunshin to take his place watching the Uchiha, which will take up a third of his chakra but it wasn't a big loss.

(Joutou Bunshin no Jutsu: Using blood to conjure an exact clone that will take more than a punch in the face to get rid of. Depending on the user's chakra and stamina, a bunshin may take as many hits as it can withstand by the user's will. Even people with kekkai genkai abilities (Sharingana, Byakugan, etc.) will not be able to tell the difference between the real one and the clone. Because of the complexity of the jutsu, a great amount of chakra is needed to form this clone. --- A really sad and pathetic description of the jutsu :(... )

Many of his classmates asked what he was doing here, thinking he had failed. He answered them all full-heartedly until he saw Haruno Sakura who was standing right in front of him. _What does she want now?_ He was always pestered and annoyed by the pink-haired girl who also found him annoying and stupid.

"Move it, Naruto! You're in my way!" She shouted at him.

Knowing only one reason why'd she'd go to all the trouble to get around him was because of... he swivelled his head to the left and saw the "classroom heartthrob"... him. _How troublesome..._ What was with this guy and his "cool" expression he has on all the time? It was like he stuck his face into a bowl of wax to keep the look on.

He watched the girl coo over the Uchiha as Iruka walked into the classroom. Explaining how they have all become shinobis and their road ahead is still long and trying. He went on till they came upon the three-man team selection. The numbers went down to number 7, "Uchiha Sasuke..." _That's a given since the Hokage has to put me in the same group as him, _"... Uzumaki Naruto..." _Just as long as I don't have any other annoying person in the team then I will be- _"... and Haruno Sakura." -_ dead..._

They were dismissed for the rest of the day till the afternoon to meet their new senior instructors. Naruto happily went down to the lake to do some extra training before meeting up with his new teammates later.

The Hokage was showing the jounin around Naruto's place telling him how he lives alone. "You'll also be dealing with the Uchiha kid so good luck!"

Hatake Kakashi sighed as he walked out the apartment door not noticing the grin on the Hokage's face. _"Sexy no Jutsu" me and you'll feel my wrath, Naruto._ He chuckled out loud.

"What the hell?" Naruto moaned as he jumped around the empty classroom that only held three Genins now. "He's so late...!" Looking at the chalk duster, his prankster side emerged. He placed the eraser between the sliding doors, "That oughta teach him." Sakura had a I-want-no-part-of-this look while Sasuke ignored their existence.

A hand emerged, pulling the door aside as Naruto's prank fell on his head. Sakura was apologizing sounding too innocent while Sasuke looked arrogant as usual. Naruto, however, was not celebrating over his successful prank but was staring at the man who had just entered the room. _That hair! _Silver hair glistened in the light... _That damn hair!_ The hair seemed to maintain its style quite effortlessly... His jaw was loose but he didn't notice._ There's no way the old man would put me with him... _He tried to reason with himself_, There's just no way!!!_

"NOOOOO!!!"

**AN**: YES!!! A chapter with no past/present... everyone's happy! i hope... plz enjoy the story, thank you! Yeah, I kind of change up the script or whatever but you get main idea. I forgot if those large shurikens had a name but i was too lazy to look them up :P There's a reason why I didn't include Naruto kissing Sasuke which will be revealed in the next chapter i think... The reason why Naruto would act like that will come up in the next chapter.


	8. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer:** I don't have the skill and mind to write up/draw up Naruto. (Really bad drawer P)

**AN:** Yes! The 7th Chapter! I want to thank all those who are very supportive of the story... I'll try my best to make your time worthwhile. (I said TRY) I'd also like to thank those who have reviewed my chapters and everything... THANK YOU! On another note, to chemdude and others who have hoped for a non-yaoi story, im sorry to say that the likelihood of a kaka/naru story is pretty big... of course id make naruto older to not make kakashi a pedophile, poor man... On with the story!

Before the man could voice his opinion on his new team a voice howled through the room. All other beings in the classroom looked towards the shortest and brightest (his orange jumpsuit) of them all. Both his teammates were wondering why he would react to the prank that was played out perfectly.

Hatake Kakashi watched as the culprit (Knew it was Naruto in the first place) seemed to be sinking in a sea of despair.

With hands and knees against the floor, Naruto's mind was racing, _He knows!!! The old man knows that I have to keep my identity hidden... He knows I have to act against my feelings towards _this_ "man"!..._ Steadily getting back up he tried to put on his best calm face on. When he faced the sensei he faltered and broke down again almost to the point of tearing, _Damn you, old man! _The Hokage had always known his hatred towards the man and had voiced many ideas of how to torture and make his life miserable. _If I do something about it now, that "guy" will suspect me... _Thinking back on his behaviour back then, _Cause I don't think he forgot about me..._

Trying to ignore the sudden downcast child who had gotten back up, he rubbed his chin with a too-nice-to-be-real smile on, "Hm, how should I put this?" He rubbed his chin a bit more, "My first impression is that I hate you."

"Don't worry, cause I hate you too." Naruto muttered.

"What?"

"Nothing! Just saying how you were easily fooled!" Naruto laughed out loud, acting his sunny self again with great difficulty.

The man stared him down, once again, a "smile" came on his face, "Oh, and I hate you the most." He said simply before exiting the classroom. Sakura and Sasuke left, leaving a Naruto trembling with anger. _I don't know who to beat up first, but old man you're definitely at the top of my list!_

Naruto had caught up with Team 3 where they had settled down with their sensei seated on the railing. During the time to find them, Naruto had already calmed himself down immensely.

"So you guys tell me a little about yourselves." The man said wearily.

"Like what?" Sakura asked quickly.

He shrugged, "The usual, favourite things, likes, dislikes, ambition, dreams, hobbies, stuff like that."

"Why don't you introduce yourself to us first, sensei?" Sakura suggested. Not even knowing his name.

"Oh... me? My name is Hatake Kakashi..." _Hatake? _A field immediately sprang into Naruto's mind, _Kakashi_? An image of a scarecrow came into the picture. _Hatake Kakashi... _He pictured a scarecrow with Kakashi's face on it (AN: I don't know if that's considered a pun...) in the middle of a field.

It took him a great deal of effort to not laugh out loud allowing him to miss what Kakashi had left to say. "Okay, you on the right," He indicated Naruto, "you go first."

Naruto adjusted his headplate and grinned, "I'm Uzumaki Naruto and I like a lot of things... I also dislike/hate a lot of things and men with weird hair (clearly, indicating Kakashi)," Naruto slipped in quickly, "I have a lot of dreams that are also my ambitions but... I will become the strongest Hokage there ever was!" The burst of energy sprang out of him as Kakashi nodded saying, "Next."

Sasuke intertwined his fingers and seemed to be speaking to them, "Uchiha Sasuke..." Naruto sighed, he knew enough of the Uchiha's life to know what he was going to say.

Sakura was last and solely based all her likes and dreams with Sasuke; Naruto being her dislike or rather hate. "Thank you, I hate you too." He murmured.

The Inner Sakura tried to rip out of her skin but failed when Kakashi continued with their conversation. "Formal training will begin tomorrow."

Sakura's anger quickly dissipated and her attention was on Kakashi, "What kind of training, sensei?"

"Survival exercises." He caught their looks, "But not the type of survival exercises you did in school instead you'll have to survive against me."

Naruto scanned the man up and down, _I've heard of his name before... something about having the Sharingan... Although he looks like an ass, I think he'll be pretty good in the ninjutsu area. _A paper was shoved in his face by Sasuke, "Hey!" He growled and grabbed the handout with tomorrow's assignment details. Reading it over briefly he sighed and got up to leave with his group. _Where should I go now?_ An evil, killing smile crept onto his face.

Sarutobi sat at his desk sorting through the missions and assignments to be given to the Jounins, Chuunins and ANBUs. A knock came at the door and he rumbled a "Come in". Without looking up he could feel a strange aura surrounding him. A killing aura. Startled, he looked up to see the blonde ninja cracking his neck and knuckles with a smirk on his face.

"Konbawa, _Hokage-sama._" He said too politely.

The Sandamine wanted to smile knowing that his scheme had worked but his lips formed a grim line. "You know you can't attack the Hokage, Naruto." He said deeply.

"Let's see... Hokages technically should be able to defend themselves quite well, there's no law against it, I mean. Besides, I hate keeping a long list." He lunged towards the man who somehow seemed to have been pinned down by something. (Naruto's little devil minions P)

A bunch of people entered the room chatting loudly and saw the scene before them. It seemed quite amusing since a kid was holding the Hokage by the collar with one hand and a fist about to make contact. Luckily, the "bunch of people" were his ANBU teammates.

"We're sorry, you seem to be in the middle of something, we'll come back later." Genma said apologetically, all about to leave the room till the Hokage hollered at them. "Come back here!"

Closing the door behind them, Naruto unwillingly got off the old man and joined his teammates, saving the revenge for later. Sarutobi straightened himself up and made a quick cough to clear his throat. "This mission will take up the night's time, so you'll be mostly be finished by tomorrow mid-morning. It's an S-Class mission." He could sense their excitement. _It makes me shiver knowing they find these missions so satisfyingly exciting. _

That night, Naruto looked over the assignment sheet Kakashi had handed them that day. Tomorrow morning he had to meet Team 7 at the training field. Just in case, he bit his thumb and performed Joutou Bunshin no Jutsu. His identical faced him, "Just the usual. Act stupid and dumb till I get back." The clone nodded, "You know where the instant ramen is right?" It was a pretty stupid question, the bunshin would know what he would know at this point. "Never mind." Before the double responded.

He met up with his teammates at the gates and they all sped out of the country towards their destination (Where else?). As they were nearer towards their targets, Naruto sensed something was wrong. _Strange..._ He sniffed the air and could smell blood. "Wait." They all stopped and they turned towards him. "We'll have to sneak up from here, something's not right." Heads bobbed up and down and they carefully made their way towards their targets.

As they got closer, they caught a glimpse of their would-be assignments torn into pieces. _Who...? _As if to answer his question a figure walked out into the clearing carrying a long sword. Half of his face was wrapped in bandages as his bare torso shone in the moonlight with blood portraying in the light. They were facing each other at this point.

"Zabuza." Genma said grimly. They don't know whether they were lucky or not to meet the demon of the Hidden Mist, but nonetheless it wasn't a good thing.

The man made a hollow laugh, "You missed the fun." His eyes sliced through them, "Too bad I can't let you go back to report about it." The blood-lust gaze alone could tell them he was merely taking a stroll, came by their subjects and finished them off just to pass the time.

Naruto quickly glanced around and saw a small lake nearby. Knowing this would be used against their advantage he signaled to the others, "Split two. On my signal." They had practiced that if they were to "Split two" Anko would go with Naruto and Genma with Izumo; it wasn't a good idea to be bunched in a group with what Zabuza had to offer.

They could see the devil grin, "It feels like this will be fun." He vanished. Sure enough he appeared above the waters as though he was walking on it. Mist began to form around them as Naruto gave the signal to split. Naruto was back-to-back with Anko listening intently for any signs of movement. Closing his eyes briefly he took a deep breath and opened them again, seeing through the mist. He could see Zabuza performing some handseals as he memorized it.

"Of the 8 targets, which one should I go for first?" He said excitedly through the mist. Within the next breath he sensed the man near them, "Game over." He swung his sword swiftly

Water splashed everywhere as his clone copied him with the same result with the other two ANBUs. "Heh, not bad. Making 4 water clones in such a short time." He felt a sharp edge against his neck, "And to copy Kirigakure no Jutsu in this mist, maybe I shouldn't underestimate you." He indicated towards the one in the Kitsune mask holding his sword against him.

The mist fog began to lift and the clone was destroyed by Genma and Izumo. "Too bad you're too naive." He whispered in Naruto's ear, kicking him into the lake.

As fast as he is, Zabuza conjured a water prison around Naruto. "Heh, heh... that prison is inescapable, you're trapped-"

"-Like a rat, right?" A slice went through the man's stomach. The ANBU inside the water bubble disappeared. "Suiton: Suigadan!" Water rose around Zabuza forming into spikes. Before he could finish, he avoided a bunch of needles directed towards him, the jutsu failing.

When he regained his stance, Zabuza had disappeared. The others looked at him, "We're not in a hurry to catch him. Let's report what happened to the Hokage first." _I have a feeling I'll be meeting up with him soon. _

"He definitely had someone with him." Izumo stated, missing who had escaped with Zabuza.

"Okay, whose turn is it to write the report?" Naruto asked. All heads turned to Genma.

"Fine, why don't you all gang up on me." He said defensively.

"Haku..." Zabuza saw the boy carry him through the forest, "... Why didn't you let me finish them off?"

The boy laughed softly, "Obviously you can't get any more injured. We're meeting Gato tomorrow."

"That ANBU." Zabuza tried to remember, "He ain't simple." Referring to the one in the Kitsune mask. _It'll be fun to fight him again._ He thought with a smirk.

Haku only smiled knowing that Zabuza hardly knew that the ANBU was a 12 year-old. (Haku's just smart like that!)

* * *

It was morning already by the time they got back. He told the others to report back to the Hokage explaining his situation. They all agreed and split. 

Arriving at the training field dressed back in his orange jumpsuit, he noticed that they had already started. Like he instructed the clone, the double was acting stupid and standing full-out in the open up against Kakashi. Making another clone he set out to find Sakura and Sasuke.

Sakura was just observing Kakashi bringing an orange book out while easily blocking Naruto's attacks effortlessly when she felt a tap on her shoulder. "Ee-!" A hand covered her mouth and she was face-to-face with Naruto. "Shh..." Before she could protest, he had dragged her out of her hiding spot.

Sasuke had just witnessed how there were now two idiots on the team: Kakashi and Naruto. After Naruto was struck from behind by Kakashi's "Thousand Years Of Pain" He heard someone whisper to him. "Yo!" He turned to see Naruto there trying to get him over to where he was. "What the hell-?" He was pulled out of the tree.

Further away from where Naruto's clone and Kakashi were, Naruto was crouching along with Sakura and Sasuke. The pink-haired girl tried to strangle him before Naruto hushed her up, "Before you say anything..." He conjured up a clone of each of his teammates, they sprang back to where they were hidden. "Okay... before you kill me, tell me honestly if you think you can beat up a Jounin like Kakashi?" _I can but it'd be too obvious- sigh-. _Sakura frowned slightly, she was never strong at taijutsu. Sasuke didn't respond either.

"We're called Team 7 for a reason, we're not Team Annoying..." He glanced at Sakura, "or Team Arrogant..." Looking at Sasuke, "or Team Hyperactive Brat." He added trying not to piss off his teammates. "This is a test of teamwork." He concluded.

"How can you be so sure?" Sakura asked. Not believing the drop-out would actually make a point.

Naruto had wanted to take her hair and choke her with it but he cooled himself down, "Think about it, he's a Jounin and we're Genins fresh out of school, you'd think he'd know that, right?"

With a moment's wait of hesitation, Sasuke was first to answer, "Fine." Sakura, seeing Sasuke had agreed went along also. Naruto nodded and ran up a tree to see the condition. The clone had already conjured up a number of kage bunshins racing towards Kakashi. "Yosh." He jumped back down and he called a bunshin back to him, absorbing the new information when it fought Kakashi.

_I have to admit, he's pretty good, but everyone always has their weaknesses..._ "If my bunshins go on fighting like this, Kakashi will eventually come after you guys who are in hiding and pick us out one-by-one." Naruto bit his lip, thinking. "The weakness he so far has shown is that orange book." _That perverted old book... maybe I can burn that one too._ "Okay... How about we..." They all developed a plan.

Kakashi was standing in the middle of the field with his book out after knocking out Sakura and burying Sasuke. _Only 10 minutes left... I thought they were different, -sigh-._ A tug came at his feet and he felt being pulled down into the ground only to avoid it with Kawarimi no Jutsu. "Oto, close one." He said as he hung out on a tree. "Ryuka no Jutsu!" He looked down and saw a line of fire coming towards him. When he went out of the way of the attack he noticed that a piece of string had been tied around his waist. _When?_ Flashbacks of him about to be pulled underground. _Then...?_

Before he can think long, balls of fire shot towards him. _Must be the Uchiha kid_... A flash of orange and black (Sasuke and Naruto) crossed his eyesight. "Gokakyu no Jutsu!" Two voices cried as two huge flames surrounded him.

Two set of hands (Sakura and Naruto)made way for the bells but he side-stepped easily. Although the bells were there he felt something was missing. Checking his pouch, eyes widened as he saw the orange book in Naruto's hand. A feeling of Deja Vu crept up on him as a flashback of an ANBU burning up his "Come Come Paradise" filled his mind. "Teme...!" Naruto quickly shouted out, "Harem no Jutsu!"

A ton of blonde chicks (Dunno if you'd call them chicks) surrounded him but Kakashi seemed unaffected. The clones immediately disappeared. "What?" Naruto scratched his head, the Harem no Jutsu has never failed, unless... "Harem no Jutsu." He called out again and instead a ton of hot blonde guys appeared (So weird I know... don't know how to describe themP). The effect was immediate and Kakashi passed out with blood loss. "He's gay?!?!?!" Naruto seemed to have dislocated his jaw when he said this.

Sasuke and Sakura came out with him and they all approached their sensei carefully in case he was faking. Naruto carefully knelt down to take the bells. Successfully untied from the man's waist belt the others grinned but faded when Kakashi stirred. Naruto turned back to see but instead his face made contact with his sensei's. Unaware of the situation, Naruto felt something pressed against his mouth, opening his eyes he saw that it was Kakashi's lips.

"OH MY KAMI-SAMA!"

**AN:** DO NOT WORRY! Kaka/Naru romance won't start... this is merely an accidental kiss (heehee... evil laugh). I want Naruto to be modest for a while but don't worry he'll show he can kick some ass in later chapters. Yup, Zabaza showed up early for Naruto (Not the best fight scene, very crappy at them). I would've made Naruto go head to head with Zabuza but I felt his team was being left out (. I made Naruto go back to the Team 7 because I wanted him to :P.


	9. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer:** Not mine... not even Japanese...

**AN: **REVIEWS!!! YEAH THANK YOU!!! Flame or shine I luv them... though I lost some readers due to the fact that they didn't know that this will turn out to be a kaka/naru fic... sorry to them... now I have put a warning on the summary (already hinted in prologue, chapter 1 and chapter 7) -Shrugs-... Some readers noticed that I have forgotten to put "katon" in front of all the fire jutus that Sasuke and Naruto used... sorry about that... ON WITH THE STORY!

Before Sakura and Sasuke noticed what had happened, Naruto was already rushing towards the lake and had dunked his head into the water while Kakashi remained seated with a dazed look as though nothing had happened.

-Gurgle-Gurgle- Naruto spat out the water and rinsed his mouth again. Although there was a mask in between it still gave him chills that he "kissed", or what you would call "accidently connected two lips together" the man he despised.

The bells were lying on the ground while Kakashi stared at them. _They managed to get the bells._ He looked towards the lake where Naruto had dunked his head into the lake again. He didn't really _mind_ the "accident".

Sasuke who was standing next to Sakura stared at the back of the loudmouth brat. Thinking back when they were huddled together where Naruto told them of the plan, he gripped his hand into a fist with a piercing look in his eyes. _Dobe... are you really that stupid? _

Sakura had no one else but eyes for Sasuke, _So cool... _But she was a bit taken aback from Naruto's performance, _No!_ She shook her head, _Sasuke is the best!_ And stared at the raven-haired boy once again.

Once Naruto joined them -finally- Kakashi handed them each a bento and crossed his arms over his chest. "This test is set up to reveal which of you would set aside your individual interests and propose to the others that you work together to get to the goal." Naruto was mumbling under his breath missing this point, but Sasuke and Sakura seemed to shift a bit stealing a quick look at the blonde boy.

Scratching his cheek, Kakashi went on, "Individual skills are not only necessary for a ninja, but it is even more important to also have teamwork skills." He looked at Naruto, somehow he knew that the plan was made up by Naruto, but when? "A true shinobi must seek the hidden meaning within the hidden meaning. You've just taken a giant step forward demonstrating some skills in teamwork, but it's not over yet." Standing up he waved to them, "That'll be it for today though. Your duties will start tomorrow." He left them with their lunches.

"That was sudden." Sakura muttered. She made a face at Naruto when he was inhaling the food at an inhuman speed, "Mou, Naruto, can't you act more gentleman-like when eating, you're such a pig." She scolded.

"Wef ur fash iz one (Well your face is one.)" He spat rice all over her and tried to make himself stop laughing.

Sasuke blew out a sigh but gripped the chopsticks in his hand. He didn't have time for this but before he fulfilled his revenge, just once, he'd like to fight Naruto.

Next Day:

_I'm an ANBU..._ "_How far away is the target?"_ Kakashi's voice buzzed in his ear.

"5 meters and closing..." Naruto said gruffly. _An ANBU captain no less..._

He heard his Team 7 companions echo their responses. "All right! Go!" He sprang out from behind a tree just like his teammates and dove for the target. _And here I am..._

He held onto the cat while it struggled in his arms. _...Getting scratched by a cat... _

After giving the feline back to its owner, Naruto could not think of how things could get any worse. It had taken him a while to adjust to Kakashi who he tried to avoid as much as possible.

"Next assignment... babysit for the council of elders... run errands... help dig sweet potatoes..." _T__here's always a limit to everything..._

"No way!" Sarutobi looked up from the sheet and eyed Naruto. "Give us something more exciting!" His teammates and sensei sighed from behind.

Iruka who was seated next to the Hokage got up and shouted at Naruto, "Baka! You're only a Genin!"

However, Naruto ignored him and was staring at the Sandamine in the eye. _Old man..._

Sarutobi felt a sudden chill down his back, _Sorry Naruto, but you'd have to continue doing these small tasks-_ The blue eyes intensified. A familiar aura surrounded him again. Was it his imagination or were there tiny devil Narutos whispering threats in his ears? Can't take it anymore he cleared his throat and took out another piece of paper.

"Very well." The whisperings began to cease. "I have a C grade task... the protection of a certain individual..."

"Who?" Sakura finally spoke.

A puff of smoke escaped his mouth, "He's right behind you."

Naruto observed a middle-aged man wearing checker pattern pants with a bottle of beer in his hand. "Looks like a bunch of brats... especially the midget with the dumb look on his face. Are you kidding me? Those kids are really ninjas?" He sputtered a bit red in the face.

"Who do you mean-?" Looking and comparing to each of his teammate Naruto glared back towards the man, "WHO ARE YOU CALLING A PINT-SIZED MIDGET YOU CAN ONLY SEE WITH A MICROSCOPE!?" (From FMA)

Kakashi had pulled him back feeling a rush of a strange aura emitting from Naruto. "No need to kill the man we're meant to protect." _Pint-sized midget? _He managed to suppress a laugh.

After the man had introduced himself as Tazuna they had all agreed on meeting at the gates in 15 minutes to get some things packed.

_Damn it, there are so many idiots whose asses I have to kick! I'll have to start carrying a list just to keep track of 'em all!_ (From FMA) Naruto thought as he was about to swing his backpack around him. _That old man is hiding something though..._ Putting the bag down, he went to his closet and changed.

The group had been walking for 30 minutes while Naruto- clothed in his ANBU uniform- searched the grounds further ahead discreetly.

The Demon Brothers were waiting for their targets to walk by when they were thrown down to the ground. About to attack the person who had pushed them out, the group they were to attack were close-by and they formed into a puddle of water, not having enough time to hide in the trees again.

Naruto -hidden in the tree the two Mist ninjas were a short while ago- observed Team 7 and Tazuna. Kakashi who had walked by took a quick glance at the puddle and passed without a word. The Brothers attacked his sensei first and proceeded towards his clone and Tazuna. _So... the old man's the cause of this attack... Mist ninjas, ka..._ Whenever he thought of Mist ninjas Zabuza would flash into his mind. _Maybe he has something to do with this..._

The group continued on their task and Naruto decided to stay with his team. He explored the bridge while the others were on a boat traveling across the waters to Wave Country. _Poverty..._ He had heard of Gato, one of the richest men in the world but most of his business is mostly underground trafficking and many other illegal trade. Now following Team 7 again, they were walking through the forest by now. Perched on a tree, he looked down and saw a bunny with white fur... white fur... raising an eyebrow he jumped down and grabbed the rabbit and went back up the tree.

_Funny, their fur is supposed to be brown by now..._ _Maybe if I throw it at the bushes and get my clone to find it..._ He tossed the bunny into the bushes (So mean Naruto!) _Now, if my clone could just find..._ "Over there!" A shuriken flew through the air... _or kill the hare... hontou sumimasen usagi-san (rabbit)..._ He sighed; what a tragic way to end an animal's life. _That baka __Hatake__ should be able to clue in what's going on... _

Mist started to rise just as Kakashi had revealed his Sharingan to Zabuza. Before he could watch any further, he saw movement at some trees across the clearing. _That must be the person who saved Zabuza last time._

**With Naruto-Clone:**

_Deja Vu man..._ Naruto thought wearily. Sasuke was standing next to him, all three of them surrounding Tazuna with kunais ready. Tugging at the "prodigy's" shirt, he could feel the boy getting irritated but still managed to say, "What?" As quietly as he could allow.

"Lend an ear for a quick sec." Naruto whispered when the demon vanished on top of the waters.

After some quick words, Sasuke felt uneasy and confused but there was no time to dwell on it when he heard Kakashi-sensei say that he will never let his comrades die. Zabuza appeared behind them after the sensei said that. "Game over."

Kakashi had gotten to him first but was tricked by Zabuza and forced to be kicked into the lake. Like he did to Naruto nights before, a water prison formed around Kakashi. At that moment, still wide-eyed, Sasuke grabbed his kunai and shurikens and threw them at Zabuza.

"Naïve." Momochi growled as he deflected the weapons easily, each and every one sinking into the waters. With one hand in the prison he saw the Copy-Nin ninja trying to get out of his jutsu, "Heh, heh, heh... that prison is inescapable . You're trapped-" He paused. A cool, sharp edge was pressed against his neck.

"-Like a rat?" The voice whispering in his ear was too familiar and the person knew that as well because it seemed to mock him.

Kakashi stared at Naruto who had appeared out of nowhere, _When did he get here?_

Sasuke and Sakura were surprised to see Naruto standing on the water holding a kunai against the demon's throat.

Hands still trembling, Sasuke was finally able to see what Naruto was talking about back then.

_Flashback:_

_"Lend an ear for a quick sec."_ _He_ _heard the dobe whisper to him. _

_Reluctantly, he gave in. "__Don't ask me how or why but there's going to be a point where Kakashi-sensei __might__ be trapped in a water prison by Zabuza. I'm going to turn into a kunai when there's a distraction and you'll throw me with some other weapons at Zabuza, when that time comes." Before he could respond, the blonde added, "Aim well... that shouldn't be so hard for you." He had a grin on his face. Sasuke couldn't help but go along with it. So when Zabuza had come behind them, Naruto had transformed himself into the kunai, which he had picked __up and kept in his hand._

_End Flashback:_

Returning to the present scene, Sasuke couldn't help but feel a bit jealous at Naruto, but the feeling didn't remain long.

Zabuza felt a bit anxious, not because of the kunai at his neck but the familiarity of all this setting. _Who is this loudmouth brat?_ Dodging the fatal neck slice, with an automatic reaction he avoided the swipe of the kunai at his stomach but his hand had been disconnected from the water prison. For a split second he could see a grin flash on the boy's face as though it was only meant for him to see alone.

Before he could attack the boy, Kakashi had stopped him who had recovered from his jutsu. _Damn!_

"Just so you know, the same spell won't work on me twice." Kakashi warned Zabuza.

After 42 handseals or so, two water dragons sprang out of the waters as it attacked each other. "Oh, I have a headache." Naruto had gotten back onto land and memorized the new jutsu being performed. "Too many handseals man." He closed his eyes and got up.

**With Naruto-ANBU:**

Naruto approached the figure not caring to cover the sounds he made. The person was wearing a mask also. "Are you supposed to be acting like a Hunter-nin?" He asked in an amused tone.

The figure turned to him, "You're that ANBU from a couple nights ago. The one who tried to kill Zabuza-sama."

Naruto shrugged, "He started it." There was a big sounding explosion and water exploded everywhere, "What are you going to do?" He watched Zabuza fly into a tree.

Taking what seemed like acupuncture needles out, the "Hunter-nin" aimed and threw them at Zabuza's neck. "I guess... let Zabuza-san recover so he can fight you again." The figure replied with a sigh, "But..." Naruto stared at the mask, "... I want to fight you too."

They both knew that they were all grinning at each other. "I'll be looking forward to it then." Naruto said, taking in the new challenge not really caring if Zabuza got away or not.

The figure jumped down to another tree to retrieve Zabuza's body.

**With Naruto-Clone:**

Naruto watched the "Hunter-nin" disappear with the demon's body even though original Hunter-nins were supposed to burn or destroy the bodies right then and there.

"... You can rest up at my house!" The old man announced, finally being appreciative of their service.

Naruto who was walking in front of the group suddenly fell with something heavy on his back. "Nani?"

"Kakashi-sensei!" He heard Sakura cry out. Only then did he know what that something was. Naruto could only sigh, _I'm getting very tired of this!_

**AN:** I stared at this chapter for so long because I had no idea how to write it... Excuse the poor writing... ( Honestly, I don't know why there's a rabbit that was kept as a pet in the forest in the manga... I get the fur and everything but not why it's there... I mean did Zabuza have a pet rabbit or something and decided to take it for a walk? Lol... Oh well, shouldn't dwell on that. I didn't really want to change the Zabuza plotline that much, and besides Haku has to fight sometime.


	10. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: ...Haha I created Naruto! ... Not

AN: Wow... it's been a while since I've updated. Deeply sorry. I'll skip the excuses and try to get on with the story that I have "abandoned" for a while P Plz note that it's not my best writing...

Chapter 9:

The gleaming metal came close to the man; the edge slowly getting closer... "AH!" A girlish scream filled the room.

--snip--

"SAKURA-CHAN!"

"NARUTO!"

"KAKASHI-SENSEI!?"

Naruto backed away from the man lying on the ground hiding the scissors quickly. Sakura turned to glare at him, "I was so close to seeing his face!" She hissed, blaming him.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever you say." Naruto rolled his eyes.

Kakashi couldn't move much but he could still sense something amiss. He looked to Naruto to see that he was innocently smiling back at him- "Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura was looking at him curiously. "Is everything all right?"

Sasuke who was sitting off in a corner (Not really a corner but somewhere away from people) had turned his attention towards them.

Naruto saw the man sit up and looking troubled. _About time_... Several days before -after Naruto had to carry his sensei to Tazuna's house- Kakashi had mentioned how a Hunter-nin finished their job before he rested.

"..." The Jounin (Jonin) placed his hand on his head, thinking. "Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura called to him yet again.

"Hmm... Of course..." Kakashi mumbled. "I think—"

"Zabuza's still alive, isn't he?" Naruto said out loud with a hint of impatience.

Sakura swung at his head, Naruto avoiding it easily. "Baka! Of course not! Zabuza's dead! Ne, sensei?" The girl turned to her sensei for reassurance.

Kakashi, however, was staring wide-eyed at Naruto. "Usou!" Sakura gaped. "It's not possible..." None of her words were heard by him.

_Naruto...?_ Kakashi was still eyeing the boy, _Isn't he just a loudmouth brat?_

"Senbon..." Sasuke carefully said, "...! No way!"

After the lengthy conversation about the acupuncture needles, Kakashi announced that he was going to increase their training schedule. "Training?" Sakura had the expression of disbelief on her face. _Does she ever shut up?_ Naruto thought solemnly.

"Nice! We can train while we wait!" Naruto exclaimed, desperate for some action.

"It won't be nice for you." An unfamiliar voice sounded at them. They turned to see a boy with a hat worn nearly covering his eyes.

"Inari, greet out guests properly!" Tsunami told the boy sternly.

Inari looked Team 7 over and pointed towards them while glancing up at his mother. "They're all gonna die."

"What?!" Sakura gasped a bit surprised.

The kid ignored her, "No one can beat Gato and his men." He turned away, "Not even a _hero."_ And went upstairs.

"Inari!" His mother called after him.

"Daijoubu." Kakashi told her softly. Tsunami could only sigh and headed off to the kitchen with her father in tow. The Sharingan-user ruffled his hair and... ruffled it again... something was wrong. Looking around he saw some very familiar silver strands of hair on the wooden floor. "N-n-nani?" He turned to the culprit. "Naruto!"

The ANBU scrambled out of the room laughing. Glancing roughly where he was, noticing that he was upstairs. About to go back downstairs he heard someone crying. "Dad." Without a word he descended back down the steps.

"So, so, so! What kind of training are we doing today?" Naruto cried out excitedly. He was walking far away from Kakashi who had tried to cut him into shreds the night before.

On crutches, Kakashi made his way towards a tree. "You'll be climbing trees." He seemed to manage to gel other pieces of hair together to make it seem that nothing was cut.

"Climbing... trees...?" His eye twitched but it didn't show much. _Usou!_

"How would that qualify as training?" Sakura asked in a disbelieving voice.

Kakashi made his way towards a tree, "Listen up. You won't be allowed to use hands. Instead..." He concentrated chakra on his feet and began to climb up the tree. "You will need to control and have enough stamina to maintain your chakra when using any kind of jutsu." He explained as he swung upside-down. "It's harder than it looks."

"Yosh! Easy stuff!" Naruto exclaimed as he picked up the kunai that was thrown down by their sensei.

"Less talk more action. Choose your trees and do your training." Kakashi simply said.

It was easy as it was breathing. Next moment he could see the bridge in the distance as well as the town across the vast forest. "Nice breeze up here." He loved the nature. It seems random but every so often he would garden some plants here and there; more like a secret hobby.

"Where's Naruto?" He heard his sensei from below.

The ANBU jumped down several branches and perched himself a couple feet above Sakura. "This is easier than I thought." He stuck his tongue out. He could sense the Uchiha getting frustrated.

Kakashi had dropped down from his branch and was gazing up towards the two of his students. _Both Naruto and Sasuke contains such massive chakra within them that it should be more difficult for them to manage, but Naruto...he can already master his chakra control!?_ Sakura and Naruto joined them on the ground. _He really is the number one most unpredictable ninja._

"Did you use your hands or cheat?" Sakura asked accusingly, afraid that Sasuke would be mad at her for being able to get up the tree before him.

"Uruse ne!" Naruto shouted at her, offended by her comment.

Sasuke looked away from them in silent anger.

They trained till it was time for them to head back for dinner.

"Naruto!" Kakashi called for him to come over.

"Hai..." The Kyuubi-container answered in a long drawl.

"You stay here and keep working on the training tomorrow with Sasuke..." He avoided the reproachful look from the child, "Instead, try going up and down the tree at least 10 times without stopping." (AN: Stupid I know)

"Heh?" Naruto made a face, "Do I really have-"

"Sakura, you will go stay with Tazuna while he works on the bridge tomorrow."

"Hai, sensei!" Sakura said brightly.

"Mou...!" Naruto pretended to act in agony.

The next day, Sasuke could only go halfway up the tree with many marks along the way. Naruto had already finished his training and was planning to make a clone so he could scour the village before Sasuke interrupted them.

"Oi, dobe," He walked nonchalantly over to him.

"Dobe, dobe, dobe... So annoying." Naruto whined waiting to see what Sasuke wanted.

Standing in front of the blonde ninja, Sasuke had a stern look on his face. "I want to fight you."

"Hm." Naruto pierced through Sasuke's stare, "Are you kidding me?"

If Sasuke didn't have strict discipline in not allowing to show his emotions, he would've taken a step back at Naruto's sudden change in his attitude.

"Mah!" Naruto seemed to regain his happy-go-lucky self, "I want to fight you too later." His teeth shone in the sun, reflecting a glare into Sasuke's eyes.

That night, they were enlightened with Inari's loss of a man that was as close as a father's connection. "Gato, ka?" Naruto slid off his chair and went outside

The ANBU watched a man in a black suit sporting black sunglasses walking in front of two bodyguards who look tough but really isn't. _Is he blind or something?_ The street was quiet, it wasn't surprising but out of the corner at his eye he could see small figures running around on the street trying to steal the purses from those who dare stray on the road.

The three men turned the corner and Naruto silently knocked out the two bodyguards. "Zouri. Waraji." Gato called out to his guards. "Zouri! Waraji!" He turned to find he was alone. "Where are those idiots?!" He growled.

"Before you call others idiot," The short man was thrown into the wall, "I see a big fat one right here." Gato was faced with someone in a kitsune mask. "Now I don't really make threats but..." He bent the man's left forearm, "... I don't want to say much now... you'll see later." A loud crack filled the air accompanied by a man's scream.

The night sky was misty but Naruto could still make out the stars. Lying on the grass, his face still displayed a grim expression. Taking a deep breath he closed his eyes and listened to the silence.

Birds chirped nearby with the morning glory. Someone was coming. Creating a clone wearing his orange jumpsuit, Naruto (still in ANBU gear) hid himself. A figure walked onto the clearing, bent down and started picking some herbs. He- Naruto decided of their gender- saw the clone lying nearby and made his way over.

The birds flew away in alarm. "Hey, wake up you'll catch a cold lying in the open like this." The boy shook the clone.

"So... How's Zabuza doing?" Naruto asked as he walked up to him.

The boy looked momentarily alarmed but he smiled, "He's healing." He studied Naruto, "I feel very exposed, now that you know what I look like."

Naruto reached for his mask, "It won't be a surprise." His hair turned blonde and not gelled letting wisps of hair fall into his visage. His skin was slightly more tanned and his face seemed sharper and less round.

The "Hunter-nin" widened his eyes but looked a bit shyly away. "You're cute."

"What?!" Naruto sputtered. The boy laughed at his reaction.

Several moments later they were both seen picking some herbs. "Do you need these herbs too?" Naruto asked while showing Haku- he told the ANBU his name- the leafy herb.

Haku studied the plant and nodded, "Yes, thank you." His smile was very angelic. The basket was filling as they conversed. "So you have been acting as an "idiot" for the past 3 years? Because seeing you now, you don't seem to be as stupid as you seem." He studied the blonde with interest.

"I'll take that as a compliment. But, yeah, you can say that I suppose." Naruto answered solemnly.

"I wouldn't know how it would feel like but it must be hard..." Haku responded.

"I think you know how it feels." Naruto quickly countered his comment, "You really aren't a blood-seeking killer like Zabuza wants you to be."

Eyes narrowed towards Naruto, "How would you know?"

Giving a minor shrug, "It's a feeling because... somehow I can tell whether or not someone has suffered in the past." Naruto said lightly, tossing in more herbs into the basket. "Zabuza was the one who– if I must use a word- "saved" you, am I right?"

"Yes." The simply reply was enough to say that Haku felt more than loyalty towards the mist ninja. "Do you have someone special in your life? Someone you want to protect?"

Naruto nodded slowly thinking back to Nozue and Nawata-sensei who he had failed to protect.

"I have a question. Why don't you attack me?" Haku asked innocently, "It's obvious I don't have any weapons on me right now."

Naruto laughed, "I bet that you don't even need weapons to inflict damage on me. But I could sense that you're purpose right now isn't to fight but to get Zabuza healed as soon as you can and I don't mind having him hanging around for a while longer." Haku giggled, which made Naruto's skin crawl. His ears perked up, _Sasukes coming_.

"I'll see later then." Haku gracefully got up and carried the basket in his arm, "I won't hold back when I face you again." He left the forest.

That night there was an eruption at the dinner table. "Why do you try so hard!? You'll never be able to match up with Gato's men even though you act all cool and tough!" Inari yelled at them, specifically towards Naruto.

"Uruse ne, chibi-ske." Naruto quietly said.

"You don't know anything! You don't know a thing about me because you don't know a thing about suffering or loneliness or what my life is like!" The room went silent.

"So you assume that if you keep talking like that, things are going to be seen in your point-of-view? You think nobody's life can be as pitiful as yours can it?" Naruto mumbled into his arms. "Keep crying, kuzo. Just keep being a cry-baby." He shoved his chair away from the table and went outside with Sakura hollering after him.

Naruto was lying on the rooftop when Inari came out to crouch on the dock. Not long after, Kakashi joined him. _What's he doing out here?_ Naruto curiously watched. "Naruto can be an ass sometimes but it's not on purpose." He rolled his eyes. "He, too, grew up without a father or any other relatives, not even a single friend," Kakashi continued, "But he never uses his past as a handicap or a weakness but instead he tries harder to have people notice him."

Naruto was about to leave, "I used to think he was just a loud, hyper-active ninja who had a silly goal of becoming a Hokage. But he proved me wrong." Kakashi spoke his mind out loud, "That's why I've decided to see him in a different light because he caught my interest."

_So cheesy man, but... I guess the guy could be pretty cool sometimes._ Naruto's smirk could be seen in the moonlight,

AN: The ending was like blah! Haku so O.O.C...I'm hoping I can satisfy you with this much first because this actually took me a month to write. Next chapter will have the fight!!!!On this site or something it says that Naruto loves gardening or something like that, so I used it in the story cause it might be used in the future. The writing is not very flowing, sorry about that. I made it so that Haku didn't break Gato's arm instead Naruto did and I made Haku have an interest in Naruto.


	11. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer**: Don't own Naruto….

**AN**: … looks like I didn't keep my word… hehehe… that's not good… Sorry I like to make mistakes on my part so if I've misspelled any words… plz dun feel offended… Ok then… Chapter 10… thank you all for your support!!! Really appreciate them!!!! CHAPTER 10! (Part of it won't make sense… but… umm… yeah…)

_"__You __can't__ die__. Not here, not now…"__ Naruto whispered in his ear…_

Team 7- minus Naruto- and Tazuna had all left together towards the bridge. In the distance, Naruto heard an uneasy sound and made up an excuse to stay behind for a while, making his way back to Tazuna's house. (AN: I know he could've sent a clone, but I want him to go back P)

Using Kawarimi no Jutsu in time to save Inari, Naruto quickly finished off the two bodyguards he had seen nights ago. "Heh… you're actually a pretty cool kid, standing up to those ninjas…" Naruto turned to the boy who was on the brink of tears. Before Inari could answer, Naruto placed his hand on the child's head, "There's nothing wrong with crying when you're happy." And he left giving the child a warm smile, "Hope you can handle things here!"

Tears ran down the little boy's face but he still shouted cheerfully, "Of course!"

_Hope the fun hasn't ended yet__…_

* * *

He was near the bridge and he could already feel the fight has already begun. _Figures_, Naruto thought logically. From a distance he could see weird ice mirrors floating in the middle of the battle. _That must be Haku__'s__…_ He had never seen this kind of jutsu before, _t__his should be interesting_. Taking a shuriken out, he threw the star towards the- just emerged- figure from the ice chamber.

The others stopped to see who had thrown the shuriken that had knocked Haku down. "Sorry. I'm late."

Kakashi could make out the orange jumpsuit from the rising mist. "Hm. That's Naruto for you." He mumbled.

"Naruto!" Sakura was actually happy to see her hyperactive team-mate.

"Che… big mouth…" Sasuke winced when he got up, covered in cuts that were slowing getting deeper towards the vital targets.

Naruto could make out the raven-haired team-mate inside the Haku's Makyou HyouShou. Passing the ice barriers he could tell that it won't be easy to get back out. "Yo Sasuke! I'm here to save you!" He crouched beside the Uchiha.

"Baka! Now we're both trapped in here!" Sasuke wanted to strangle the kid beside him. "Do you have no brain or anything-?!" They both turned back to the mirrors. It was occupied by Haku once again.

Sasuke tried to melt all the ice mirrors that it was no use. "Damn!"

Within a blink of an eye, ice needles attacked their whole body. "Wah… that stung." Naruto said with a frown. _I was caught off my guard._ Sasuke was still fuming beside him, his cuts deeper than before.

"It's useless." Haku's voice rang around them.

Picking himself up, Naruto had a smirk on his face, "Really?"

* * *

Kakashi was facing Zabuza but he couldn't concentrate because of Sasuke and Naruto's fight with Haku. "He has the Kekkai Genkai ability doesn't he?"

"Heh, heh… So you've noticed." The Demon of the Mist laughed hollowly.

* * *

"I have my own dreams… and so do you…" The atmosphere was filled with raw energy to kill. "I'll do whatever it takes to protect the one I care to fulfil his dream… doing so is my own dream." Excitement grew within both the Genin and ANBU. "To that end, I will become a true shinobi… and I shall kill you both."

Sakura's cries were faded from where they were standing, but it didn't take a genius to tell that she was trying to encourage them. _Can she only cheer and act smart?_ Naruto stretched his neck from side to side.

Kakashi believed they weren't mentally prepared to take a human life just like Haku is willing to… _I have to end this quick_… Making way to reveal his Sharingan, the fight between Zabuza and him continued.

Naruto decided to wait and see how he could break Haku's jutsu while receiving more slices from Haku's needles. _If only his dream wasn't to die for a guy who killed his whole village… he could be a cool ninja… _Something drifted into his mind allowing a free attack from Haku's part.

"Pay attention dobe!" Sasuke shouted at him, as the blonde fell down with a- thump-.

Naruto was still in deep thought, arms crossed, facing the mirror above them, unaware that he had fallen. _Hmm…_ Sasuke activated his Sharingan and dodged an attack. _Maybe…_ More ice that had fallen shattered around him. _It _could_ work… _"Time to end this!" The Hunter-nin materialized out of one of the mirrors. _Oh right…_

Sasuke was making his way towards him, with needles flying in Naruto's direction. _Oh I see…_ Just as the weapon was about to pierce through Sasuke's neck Naruto knocked the Uchiha out. "Thanks man. It'd be bad if you died." He told the slumping figure as Sasuke fell unconsciously on the wet ground.

Haku had merged back with an ice mirror as he scanned the scene before him. "What are you doing?" He questioned Naruto who had just made his team-mate faint.

"Seems like I can't play around…" Tattoos appeared briefly on the boy's body as a burst of chakra was emitted from the ANBU. The impact of the chakra spread out around the battlefield also affecting where Kakashi and Zabuza fought.

Haku was overwhelmed by the change in chakra. _It feels so heavy right now._ It took an effort to raise his head to look at Naruto who was still partly covered in tattoos.

With a smile, the blonde disappeared, "Let's begin."

Both Kakashi and Zabuza paused at what they were doing when the new source of chakra surrounded them. "Is that Zabuza?" Trying to see through the mist, Kakashi found the feeling unsettling. "It's not the Nine-Tails… who-?"

Zabuza found the strange chakra to be unusual but familiar in a way. _This can't be Kakashi... It's too strong…_ _And it's not Haku's either… _Glancing quickly where Haku was, _The Uchiha kid…?_

_Where is he?_ Haku could only see the Uchiha's body within the vicinity. Out of the corner of his eye, something bright and blue came at him. Transporting himself away from the danger, he saw Naruto sporting a blue flaming arm.

"Nan o desu ka…?" Haku said in alarm, staring at the arm. Throwing numerous of needles, Naruto easily melted them from a distance. "Damn…" Escaping from the mirror, Naruto grabbed him in the midst of the transportation. The blue light disappeared but it didn't stop Naruto from punching Haku in the face. Haku's Makyou HyouShou shattered as the "hunter-nin" was knocked through his own mirrors.

The mask slowly cracked and fell in pieces. _Zabuza-san_. Haku stood hopelessly as though he had already died and watched as Naruto walked closer to him. _Zabuza-san…_

The ANBU stopped in front of him, eyes staring. The boy leant up and whispered in the 15 year-old's ear,"You said you have someone you want to protect… that you're even willing to give up your life just to make that person's dream come true…"

"He has no need for a weak shinobi." Haku replied simply. "You've taken away my reason for existing." The story unravelled of Haku's history.

"If you say that every person has someone important in their life… how do you know Zabuza's isn't you?" Naruto questioned quietly.

Eyes blinked but the emotion that was shown disappeared. "I am just a weapon for Zabuza-san." A horrible feeling struck Haku, _Zabuza-san!_ About to transport to where Zabuza was he found that his whole body was frozen. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't move from the spot. "Nani…?" He glared at the boy who now stood in front of him.

Before the jutsu wore off, Naruto quickly performed Joutou Bunshin no jutsu. When the task was finished he summoned the clone to where Zabuza was. The mist made it hard to see where it went but Naruto knew that he might be able to save the Devil.

"You can't die. Not here, not now…" Naruto whispered in Haku's ear; eyes widened in confusion, before he was knocked out. Using Meisaigakure no jutsu, he camouflaged the body and leant it against the bridge wall. _You'll understand soon enough…_

Running towards where Kakashi fought, he saw that his clone had blocked his sensei's Raikiri attack. About to slice Haku away, Zabuza missed when Kakashi stepped out of the way bringing Naruto's clone with him. _How heartless…_

"Naruto! You're okay!" Sakura's voice rang from the other direction of the fight. "Where's Sasuke-kun?"

Naruto nodded his head towards where Sasuke lay, "He's sleeping." He explained briefly.

Not taking the time to scold the blonde, Sakura dragged Tazuna with her and ran towards the direction Naruto indicated. The mist has already cleared up and the bridge was occupied by Gato and a couple hundred of his men. "Sorry Kakashi, but this fight's over." Zabuza told the Copy-nin clearly forgetting about Haku.

"Ne…" Naruto began, "Have you no remorse for your friend?" He angrily asked.

"He was simply a tool for me to use." The blood-soaked devil replied immediately.

"Do you really mean that?" Naruto shrugged off Kakashi's hand that had tried to make him stop. "He loved you so much… do you really feel nothing?!" His temper grew. "Without his own dream and to die as a tool… do you really feel nothing at all?!"

The man turned to him with tears running down his face, "He was too kind." Eyeing the crowd in front of them, "Kid, let me borrow your kunai." Catching the weapon in his mouth, he raced towards Gato's men. Ending Gato's life by slicing his head off Zabuza fell to the ground with only thoughts of Haku running through his head. _Thank you for everything… I'm sorry, Haku…_

After dealing with the rest of Gato's men, Kakashi had walked over to where Zabuza laid. "I have a request… can I see his face?" The dying man asked with a pained voice. No one had noticed that Naruto had disappeared when Kakashi placed Zabuza beside Naruto's clone. He touched the boy's face. "If I could… I'd like to go to the same place… as you…" Slowly, his eyes closed forever.

"So… What do you think now?" Naruto asked as he stood beside a sitting figure. There was a silent answer, "I won't stop you from killing yourself but technically Zabuza will always be wherever you are and perhaps through his cold heart he might not want you to die now." He spoke as though it was an everyday conversation they were having. "Come to Konoha."

There was a reaction this time. "Why should I?"

"Because…"

* * *

2 weeks later:

They visited the burial site of the "two" shinobis before they journey back to Konoha. When the coast was clear, a figure appeared before Zabuza's grave. Cool, slender fingers slid down the edge of the sword that was buried halfway into the ground. "Zabuza-san."

Finally arriving back in Konohagakure, Naruto felt content enough after learning that the bridge was going to be named after him. Saying goodbye to his team-mates and sensei he went back to his dingy apartment to take a shower, which his body welcomed greatly. Looking in the mirror he could still see the fading marks of where Kakashi had pierced through his clone's body. _This sucks… who would invent a jutsu where I can feel part of the pain of what my bunshin suffers?_

Visiting Ichiraku, he received a hardy welcome from Teuchi and his daughter Ayame. "Haven't seen you in a while. Business is quiet without you!" He exclaimed loudly after serving him his favourite dish.

Before heading back home, Naruto stopped by Techou's Weights. "Oi Tess-san!" The ANBU called out in the empty shop, the big man no where to be seen.

"Hoho! A customer-!" The deep voice rumbled from behind the counter. "Eh? It's just you Naruto."

Naruto found it remotely surprising that Tessai was even expecting new customers. _How does he even keep this shop open?_ "Always been the only customer for 8 years." He tried to sound enthusiastic, but failed. "Are there any new vests or any other strap-ons for the wrists and ankles that can hold more weights?"

"I might have something…" The man ducked behind the counter breaking a few things along the way. "Here you go!" It was dusty but it seemed like good material.

"Cool, thanks. You can put it on my tab." Naruto quickly answered, taking the new equipment and rushing out the door before Tessai could stop him.

Tessai called after him, "How often do you even wear them anyway?"

Pausing in his step, Naruto smiled, "All the time."

AN: I'm sorry once again that I haven't submitted this chapter on time, thank you very much for your patience… This chapter was pretty boring, I know… I think my brain is actually deteriorating as the school year goes by, LOL! I can only use very simple words and sentence structures… heheh… The bright, blue flaming arm will be somewhat explained in later chapters… When Haku couldn't move it was because Naruto used the Kanashibari no Jutsu that body freezes someone if you stare them down… I don't even know if I used it correctly.


	12. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

**Disclaimer:** Not mine (

**AN**: Happy new year! Sorry once again for updating so late- can't say my comp. crashed or anything… but I got separated from it for a couple of weeks ( But still my bad… deep apologies… got a lot of people urging me to update… heh, heh… The reviews really helped thank you! BEWARE there will be much randomness in this chapter! Try to enjoy!

* * *

"Training…?!" Squad 3 stared, surprised, at their captain. "Why?" Anko asked the million dollar question. 

"Nothing much, it's just that we really haven't 'bonded'- I guess I could say- in a while." Naruto explained with a wide grin on his face. They were all seated at Ichiraku's after finishing a small mission.

"But… why?" She waved her hands to express her irritation. The two other men could see her eye twitching. "It's not like it's going to make a differe-" She accidentally knocked her cup of tea, sending it to the ground. Before she could react, the tea "magically" appeared back onto their table, the contents as still as it was before it fell.

"What-?" The purple-haired girl looked from Izumo and Genma back to the blonde sitting across from her who had an expression as though nothing had happened. "Did you-?" She was cut off by Ayame.

"This is a rare gathering." The girl smiled pleasantly, ready to take their orders. Genma returned the smile and she started to blush. Naruto grinned, _Someone's got a crush_. "Uh… W-what would… I'm sorry…" She stuttered, obviously embarrassed in her situation.

"It's okay," Naruto calmed her happily, "We'll have…" As he ordered for his team, the others gave each other eye signals asking if they saw what just happened.

_Was it just me or did he catch that?!_ Anko referred to the tea cup slip.

_Could be, but I didn't see him move or anything…_ Izumo was still processing what just happened.

Genma chewed on his toothpick, _It's possible… we've never actually seen his 'real' skills so to speak…_

"Okay, where were we?" Naruto looked excited after ordering his favourite ramen.

"We'll do it!" Anko spoke up quickly.

"Do what?"

"The training thing that you suggested a couple minutes ago." Izumo informed their captain.

Genma leaned back, "We figured it might help our team skills and we can also learn each others' abilities as well." The others nodded with him.

"…" Naruto looked suspiciously at them. Slowly, a wide grin appeared. "Okay!" His blue eyes twinkled with excitement. Their food arrived. After a chorus of "Itadakimasu!" They satisfied their hunger, the three others unknowing that their captain was beaming happily at how his little trick worked.

"Who's paying for this one?"

"Taichou!" His team-mates automatically cheered.

"Oi! I pay every time-!"

"Naruto?" The said person nearly choked on the piece of meat he was chewing on.

Silver hair still ridiculously gelled to cover the missing strands Naruto had sheared off; the masked ninja seemed surprised to see Naruto in the ramen shop.

"Kakashi…" Nearly forgetting that he was a student of the man, "… sensei."

Kakashi looked from his student to the other three who were with him. "I can imagine them hanging out together… but with you?" Doubting the child, he sensed something 'fishy'.

(**AN:** Kakashi still doesn't know Anko, Genma and Izumo are ANBUs yet)

Naruto frowned after swallowing his pork. "Why can't I?"

His sensei didn't answer but had a suspecting look on his face. "What's going on?" He demanded from the 12 year-old. The three other ANBUs were sipping their tea, enjoying the scene. He asked again, "Why-?" Naruto slammed his hand on the table, making the food fly up for a split sec.

"Okay…" Anko, Genma and Izumo eyed each other, _Is he really going to tell him?_

_Well he is his sensei, so it won't hurt to tell._

Naruto motioned for the man to grab a chair and join them. Kakashi did so and felt more intrigued in what Naruto was about to tell him.

"Closer…" Naruto looked around the shop to see if there were any eavesdroppers. Satisfied, Naruto whispered in a low voice, loud enough for the 5 of them to hear. "This is a secret you can't tell anyone okay, sensei?" The man rolled his eyes but still nodded when he saw the serious look on the boy's face. His team-mates were still sipping from their cups, watching closely.

"We are actually all…" _Sandamine's going to kill him…_ They all thought, "… in the DDR club."

"…"

"…" Shaking hands were holding the cups, the others were shocked at first but managed to suppress their laughter, knowing that the masked ninja won't believe him. _There's no way---_

"Ohhhh…" The ANBUs continued to watch, "That makes sense."

Anko began to choke while Izumo spat his tea out, Genma breaking the cup in his fist. _No it doesn't!_

About to interrupt, there was a loud "HA!" Looking towards the Sharingan user.

"DDR club?!" He spasm as the other customers were starting to wonder what was going on at their table. "I can actually see you guys do it too!"

A hand clasped Naruto's shoulder, Genma with an annoyed face was attempting to strangle him when Kakashi stopped for a moment and asked, "Who's the best out of all of you guys?" He asked seriously.

Naruto gave a devilish grin towards the man with the bandana. "Of course Genma."

"Taichou!"

The restaurant seemed to have gone quiet.

"Taichou?" Kakashi's eyes narrowed, shooting curious looks at Naruto.

Without dwelling too long on the problem, Naruto answered promptly. "Right… sorry _Taichou_… forgot to call you that."

"What?!"

The hand on his shoulder was trembling as it tightened its grip on him.

"Genma's a shy man, but he's the one who founded the club." Naruto interrupted with a matter-of-fact tone.

There was a _–clatter-_ and they discovered that it was Ayame who had dropped her tray. Slightly red in the face, she quickly turned around to try to cover her giggles.

Genma grabbed his head. "I'm done for..."

As the three remaining ANBUs sunk into the sea of despair, Naruto got up. "Well then…" Putting down some money on the table, "I'll take my leave." He squeezed out of his seat past Kakashi who was near bursting out again.

Pausing in his step, Naruto turned back to the table. "So I'll tell you guys when and where the next meeting is, okay?" He had a wide grin stretched on his face making his eyes smaller. To an outsider, it seemed like a normal question, but Squad 3 knew what their captain really wanted to say: _"Make me pay all the time again; you'll never see the light again."_

"Scary-" The three thought, shivering.

* * *

The winds picked up and Naruto lifted his head up to inhale the fresh air. Foreign smells accompanied the Konoha breezes. _Mist, Sound, Rain… Sand._

He made his way to the Hokage's office.

"Heh?"

Naruto was sifting through folders while Sarutobi had given upon trying to stop him.

The man massaged his temples, "I said you have two choices."

"Two?" It didn't seem like a question.

There was a knock on the door. Without waiting for a reply the door began to open. The Sandamine was about to tell the person to wait to let Naruto leave but it was too late. "Oi Sandamine." Hatake Kakashi walked into the room. His eye shifted next to Sandamine. "You!"

"Kakashi-" The elderly man got up from his chair as the silver-haired man- aside from Sarutobi- made his way across the room.

"I still have a score to settle with you." He said in a deadly voice.

Sarutobi turned to see an ANBU instead of the blonde.

(**AN:** Technically, there would be no suspicions if Kakashi sees Naruto in the Hokage's office but I wanted the two guys to meet again )

"Back at you." The ANBU replied coolly.

_They should really work on their "bad" talk. _The old man sighed with a sweatdrop, worried for his office.

"But too bad, I have more important things to do." Naruto smiled beneath the mask. With that he disappeared.

"Hmph…" Kakashi still stared at the spot where the ANBU stood seconds ago.

* * *

"Good morning!" They were far from the village to avoid any interruptions. The sun wasn't up yet and the only person who seemed to be awake was their captain. 

_-Mumble-Mumble- _

The only day they didn't need to work is when Naruto chose to have their training day. _Where the hell does he get the energy?_

The notification of their meeting was pretty… "Extreme". Genma, Anko, and Izumo were spending a pleasant evening individually, getting ready to sleep till a "ball" with Naruto's face on it flew through their windows and splattered against their walls. What seemed like blood began to drip down their walls creating a message:

"Meet me at 4AM sharp, tomorrow by the front gates, or else… Heh, heh, heh…"

(**AN:** Got it from Bleach… yeah!)

It took them hours to wash off the blood-coloured message. _Again, why do we have such a weird and creepy captain?_ Forgetting the fact that they chose him to be their taichou.

The last week was torture for them as people bombarded the ANBUs with questions about being in the DDR club while trying, desperately, to persuade them that they weren't affiliated with the association.

"What are we doing today t-t-taichou?" Anko asked as she yawned.

"Let's go jogging!" Naruto announced, clearly ignoring the woman.

The two men groaned, thinking they would do something more exciting and challenging. The males were all wearing black sleeveless shirts showing off their tattoos- which Naruto usually hides with a jutsu- with black cargo shorts that go slightly past their knees.

Anko was wearing similar clothing with an added fishnet shirt over her tank top.

"But that's so boring-" Anko exclaimed before she noticed she was left behind by her team. "Hey!"

-A couple minutes later-

"I thought we were jogging." Izumo mumbled. They were sprinting through the trees following the 12 year-old.

"Aren't we?" The blonde looked confused.

"No!" They replied in sync. _He really needs to work on his choice of words. _

"But after this lap we're going to start running." Naruto looked innocently back at them.

"Heh?!"

"You guys don't want to?" Their captain began to pout. They didn't respond, "Okay… how about we play a game?"

"Game?" This ANBU really is a kid.

"Mm-hm… I learned about it from this foreign country, I think it's called 'Tag'."

_Are you kidding?_ They tried to concentrate on Naruto who was explaining the "game".

"… I'm going to change a few rules though. Basically, someone becomes the "target" and the rest of us have to capture them, but since this is a fast-paced game- no jutus or weapons-, we will always be running. If I see that you're not…" He started to laugh, "Perhaps you don't remember what happened last week…" Chills ran down their spines.

"But anyway, each "target" will have 10 minutes to "escape" from the rest of us, if they successfully do so, the people going after them will receive some 'extra training'." If they weren't running at the same time, their bodies would have stiffened significantly, having just seen an "evil" glint flash in the boy's "innocent" blue eyes.

"Izumo."

The anxious man immediately responded, "Hai!"

Getting ready to start the clock on his watch, "You get a 3-second head-start."

"Nani?" –_Beep_- "Shimatta!" He disappeared quickly ahead of them.

"Genma."

"Hai."

"Why don't you direct us as to what to do…" Genma looked at Naruto with a queer look, "… you don't think this is just a game, do you?" The infamous whiskered smirk appeared.

The man obliged with a smile and began to form a plan in his head.

It took about 8 minutes to catch the one-sighted man.

**(AN:** Of course Naruto can catch him in like seconds but since it's the others' plans, he should follow them accordingly)

"Okay, we'll have a 5-minute break." Naruto noticed they were starting to gasp for air. "Next 'target' will be Genma."

"Haii--" They all took tiny sips of water, careful not to intake large amounts.

After Genma had taken off, Naruto told Anko to develop a plan and lead them. In 9 minutes and 15 seconds, the toothpick-chewing-obsessed man was caught.

"Che, so close." He stated; a bit peeved.

They took a 10-minute break this time. "Anko."

"Hai." She already knew what to do.

Izumo was the one to lead the team and they effectively "captured" their "target" in 9 minutes and 32 seconds.

"Okay, next training—" Naruto was walking off to the lake when he was interrupted.

"Aren't you going to 'play', taichou?" Genma seemed to dare him.

Naruto rubbed his chin in thought. "Sure." The blonde took off his watch and tossed it to him. Genma began to set it.

"3-second head-start." –_Beep-_

Naruto smiled, "There's no need." The 3 looked at each other, "You can start- _now_." They caught his after-image and was nowhere to be seen.

"Damn, he's fast."

Naruto ran through the trees, taking in account of his surroundings. A foreign shadow lurked by as he took note of it. "Oto!" He sprang off a branch dodging his team-mate, "Nearly got caught there."

"Heh." The hebi ANBU leaped off again.

Three people were following him… make that four.

-_Pant- Pant- Pant-_

"Oh, too bad." Naruto crouched down in front of his team who were out of breath. "Better luck next time."

They were given an extra 5 minutes to try to catch him, but it was useless.

Stretching his back while absorbing the morning sun, he didn't seem tired at all. "Next training!" He skipped off towards the lake.

"Hai…" They somehow managed to drag themselves to the side of the lake; Naruto was nowhere to be seen. They could only hear the early birds and the waterfall some distance away.

Something splashed out of the water and they saw a boulder roll towards them, stopping inches away. Two more followed the first. "Okay!" Naruto jumped out of the lake and shook his head, like dogs would do to get dry. "Next… carry your rock and jump into the lake, walk underwater till you get to the foot of the falls and I'll explain the rest when we get there." His shirt was soaked but he still didn't bother to take it off, "Feel free to take off anything- except your undergarments, I guess- the temperature is great in the lake!"

He headed to the waters again, "Oh, and if anyone resurfaces, the whole team will have to start over again from the starting point." With a wide grin he "cannonballed" into the clear liquid.

The two men took off their shirts showing off their years of training. They both looked at Anko who didn't show any signs of taking off her fishnet shirt or anything at all. "Perverts!" She growled at them.

"Che, it's not like there's anything to see under there." Izumo mumbled with a smirk.

-_Smack- -Splash-_

Genma cleared his throat, "After you." He didn't want to enter the waters like Izumo had, who was forced to fall in when Anko threw a boulder at him.

She bent down to grab the second rock and jumped into the waters with Genma following. The instant they touched the lake's surface, they knew that Naruto was playing them again. Frozen chills were stitched into their bodies, too stubborn to supply them with much warmth.

Naruto, who was waiting for them, waved them forward to follow him. Their progress was slow and their captain only seemed to go faster every minute. There were times where one of them wanted to break the surface but they restrained since they didn't know how far along they were.

_How is he staying down without a chunk of rock like ours?_ Genma was numb all over and he was sure the others were too- well, except Naruto. The lake was neither shallow nor deep but their ears were popping, that didn't stop the roaring sound of the waterfalls to echo in the waters.

Naruto jabbed his arm upwards telling them to swim up; they did so and followed him to their space of fresh air. Greedily inhaling the morning air, they found that the water wasn't as cold as it was before.

"Wow! That felt great!" Naruto splashed around as his comrades watched. "Okay, next we're climbing up the falls."

"You mean walk up right?" Anko referred to the concept of walking on water by using chakra.

The blonde shook his head, droplets of water spraying everywhere, "Nope." He flexed his arms, "Just pure climbing. No jutsus or weapons." Using one arm he pulled himself out of the lake and hung from the ledge he grabbed onto. "Let's go!!!" Naruto grabbed another ledge and swung up a bit more. He heard a couple of splashes and he saw the three of them still in the water. "What's wrong?"

"N-nothing." They replied. Naruto had continued on. It was harder than it looked. The rush of the falls was actually stronger than they anticipated and the rocks were slimy and slippery.

"You guys are way behind!" The spray of the mist was refreshing. Naruto was already near the halfway point. "Damn!" They scrambled to get onto a ledge that they can grip on. After a few tries they learned that using just one arm is practically impossible for them at the moment.

Slowly, they began to make progress.

* * *

Naruto climbed over the edge of the falls and waded towards land to wait for the others. He sensed someone approaching as he rubbed his upper left arm to hide his tattoo, someone came out of the forest. "Kakashi-sensei?" The man seemed, once again, surprised to see Naruto. "What are you doing here?" 

The man regarded him, "Why do I see _you_ everywhere?" The boy was clad in dripping wet black clothing. His feathery, blonde hair was drenched but still glistened in the sun. The boy's skin was actually more tanned than he remembered… _Huh… I imagined him to be a tad bit chubby, but I guess not…_ He abruptly coughed, hoping Naruto had not caught him checking him out. "Are you training here?" He looked over towards the falls.

"Hai!" Naruto energetically replied. "What about you sensei!?" He asked, trying to act as polite as he could.

The jounin shrugged his shoulders, "On a small mission." Checking his watch, "I'll be taking my leave… don't want to be late."

"Heh…?" Naruto slouched over in disbelief, "Since when have you _not_ been late?"

"Tsk, tsk, I wouldn't be late if I didn't get distracted on the road of life." He promptly answered.

"Liar!"

"Don't overwork yourself." The man advised Naruto before he left.

Familiar pantings emerged from the stream of water. "It's about time." His team-mates managed to clamber over the waterfall. Dragging themselves to the banks, they collapsed in exhaustion.

"Mou… you guys so tired already?" The boy frowned.

"Fine! We admit that it was harder than it seemed." Izumo exhaled greatly.

Naruto tilted his head from side to side, "Then how are we going to do our next training?"

"There's more!?" Anko immediately responded; her arms were starting to ache.

"Well… our last training before we head for breakfast." There was no answer. "Fine, maybe we'll just run for the rest of the time." He said lightly.

"Okay…" They moaned; how much more torture and mind games can they withstand?

After a couple minutes of rest, they gathered to allow Naruto to explain the exercise. "Quite simple. We're going to spar with each other." Raising three fingers, "Three against one."

They all began to grin; the fun was about to start.

"Like the other trainings, no--"

"—jutsus or weapons." They finished for him.

Each person was given 30 minutes of sparring time, enough to suck the life out of them, but they were all eager and, surprisingly, still full of energy. "No going soft on us taichou." Izumo challenged the boy.

"What? No being Naruto joked.

"NO!"

"Fine." Taking off his shirt, he tossed the garment onto the ground, which sunk with the weight.

Anko's eyes widened, "You had weights on?!"

"Yeah I just got these ultra thin weights a couple days ago."

"What?!"

As the two were "conversing", Genma now knew how Naruto was able to stay underwater without a boulder. _I'm actually somewhat jealous_. The gap between their skills and his seemed to be endless.

"Yosh! Let's fight! But first--!" He turned towards the shadowed areas of the forest, "—I'd like to ask nicely for the person hiding in the shades to please come out."

There was no responsive sound but the birds' high-pitched chirps. Like a shadow creeping behind the sun's rays, a figure emerged. He smelled foreign… There was a large gourd strapped onto his back; red hair sprouted from his scalps as his eyes revealed months or even years of insomnia. The kanji word "Love" was occupied on the left side of his forehead, his aura nothing close to the word etched on his face. Blue eyes locked with theirs. _…Smells like Sand…_

* * *

**AN:** Personally, I love DDR… heehee… though I suck at it ( I have no idea what other villages entered the Chuunin exams… tried looking it up but couldn't find anything. I didn't want to make Kakashi too perverted… heehee… in due time… I guess from my hard to read descriptions, one of my favourite characters have shown up… yeah!!! This chapter is actually 8 pages long… wow… new record for this story… haha… let's hope the next chapter will be up by this year P Thank you and hope you enjoyed this chapter! 


	13. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12:**

**Disclaimer: If only Naruto was mine... sigh…**

Note to** a kitsunes light**, **Clem and Kitsune no Kutsuu (couldn't reply somehow)**: DDR stands for DanceDanceRevolution which is a really addicting game, popular in mostly Asia and practically everywhere else. The point of the game is to match the arrows on the screen with your feet… Like I noted in previous chapters, pretty bad at explaining things so I'll introduce my buddy… Wikipedia! en./wiki/DanceDanceRevolution or you can go on youtube and check out the wicked a people who practically spend their life on it!

Yes… I know, I know… it's been months since I've last updated… sigh… I'm very sorry once again to all of you patient readers who have been giving me great reviews! Thank you so very mucheee!! Okay my excuse was… blah blah blah blah blah… and the fish turned into a pig and it was all so crazy… Glad to let it all out, now on with the chapter! (Though I rewrote it a couple of times :P) GOOD LUCK!! I WISH YOU ALL THE BEST TO SURVIVE!!

* * *

Naruto noticed that the forest did not emit anymore sound as though all the creatures went into hiding.

"Can we help you?" Izumo tried to sound polite sensing the deathly atmosphere surrounding the newcomer.

The eyes did not waver from Naruto.

The blonde ANBU blinked slowly and replied, "Gaara from Sand Country, isn't it?" It was more of a statement than a question.

The red-haired seemed momentarily shocked before he hid his surprise. For the first time he spoke, "You're the strongest here aren't you?"

Naruto nonchalantly shrugged his shoulders, "Saa… who knows…"

Gaara appeared unsatisfied with the casual response.

"Taichou—" Genma carefully whispered not comfortable with the unsettling atmosphere. He turned to Naruto but saw sand begin to surround their captain and encompass him. "Taichou!" The sand closed in uniquely but deadly.

"Teme!" The hebe-mask owner growled, springing forward to attack.

"Anko!" Genma tried to pull her back. Although the attack was sudden, blindly charging towards a guy with deathly attacks is not the most logical way to react for an ANBU.

_That was uncalled for!_ She side-stepped and vanished to reappear behind the Sand kid. Holding the spare kunai- taken from the side of her thigh- it seemed like Gaara did not notice her behind him. About to deliver the blow, a hand grabbed her wrist and pulled her away.

Shocked, Anko stared from –who she noticed was- Naruto to the wall defence made of sand that had been readied to block her attempt. Grain by grain the defence fell back to the solid ground innocently as though it would never be used as a weapon.

"T-taichou—?!" Anko tried to separate her anger from the confusion.

Naruto spoke quietly, "Don't act so rashly." It was directed to both Gaara and Anko. His expression seemed to harden, disallowing any other emotions to occupy his visage.

She could feel the blood rushing back to her hand as he let go of it. Clenching her teeth, she looked away trying hard to stabilize her emotions. _Chikusho!_ (AN: Basically a swear word. )

The glare was re-located back to Naruto. There seemed to be a struggle fighting within Gaara as though there was another living soul inside him.

_A demon within…_ Naruto quickly ignored the nagging feeling that he had been experiencing for the past few weeks. It seemed as though the Kyuubi wanted to release its own powers… to be freed more than it used to.

The Sand nin began to form seals for a greater attack did Naruto decide to react, "I guess I'll be seeing you during the Chuunin Exams."

The eyes widened but quickly closed as Naruto knocked him unconscious; the sand guard proving useless against him.

His team looked grimly at him. "Why—?"

"Why didn't I kill him?" Naruto finished.

Genma stared at the unconscious body, "You could have ended him quick and easy before he gets the chance to harm others." To hear such harsh comments at one's perspective would mistaken them as cold-blooded killers. "Although there aren't many kids with such devilish powers… they do exist."

Naruto did not reply. The energy that sparked the blonde throughout the training seemed to be contained as he stared off into his own thoughts.

"Izumo."

"Hai."

"Can you send him back to his sensei? I think the guy's name is Baki or something like that. He'll be out for a while." Naruto nodded to Gaara.

"Can I, you know…" The breeze sent chills up his spine. His shirt far from him, "… get my shirt?"

Naruto snapped back into his "bright and cheery" mode. "No, I think you should proudly show off your body to the whole village and let them gaze in awe as you pass by—."

"Okay, I get it!" Izumo quickly jumped down the waterfalls to retrieve his shirt.

"Oi, can you get mine too?" Gemna hollered after him, body shivering. Looking over to their taichou he didn't seem affected by the cool winds. _What is he?_

Izumo, back with the clothing, made his way to the group. Carrying the Sand shinobi, Izumo got ready to send him back.

"It's best we find out why they're here before we act hastily." Naruto answered their unspoken question. "Let's meet at Ichiraku's in an hour." He took off.

The rest of Squad 3 looked at each other and at the foreigner trying to distinguish what Naruto was thinking.

"Ah, tacihou forgot his shirt."

"Should we catch up and give it back to him?"  
"Nooo… maybe he wanted to show off his body to the whole village to let the villagers gaze in awe as he passes by."

* * *

Sarutobi was quietly sneaking a nap before someone appeared into the room without any notice, "Naruto," Without opening his eyes he knew who it was, "How many times have I told you to knock or signal before coming in?" He silently cursed the boy for disturbing his sleep. "And why aren't you wearing a shirt?" _It's pretty windy outside._

Ignoring the last question, "Ah…" Naruto hopped onto the desk, seating himself comfortably. "Afraid I'll barge into something R-rated? I knew you were a closet pervert, ero-san." The blonde said with a wide grin.

Immediately turning red that was mixed with embarrassment and anger, Sarutobi turned away to make it less obvious but only did the vice-versa. Before Naruto could continue pestering the Sandaime's hentai-ness (AN: Made up a word there, hehe.) He cut in quickly, "Is there something _important_ you wish to speak with me about?"

"Actually I do…" Naruto jumped off and strolled around the room randomly examining things. "Have you received or heard any news of Orochimaru recently?" The old man stiffened at the mention of his ex-student's name.

"The Sand and Sound country seem pretty 'close' lately, huh." Naruto continued, his statements making no connections at all. He was flipping through a history book.

"Please be more straightforward." Sarutobi started to become frustrated.

"Ah!" Naruto began to juggle a couple of vases, which made the old man stand up at once. "About those two options—"

"You've decided already?" Sarutobi was about to get his precious antiques back before Naruto finally set them back down.

"I'll do both."

"Nan de?" The old man strained his ears to verify that he heard correctly, "Why do you want to do both?"

A sly grin appeared, "Not 'want to'… but more like 'going to'… besides one option might be more boring than the other so I'll just do both, it's no big deal."

"Wh—?"

The blonde cut in, "Oh, this conversation's over?" The Hokage could only try to understand what he was talking about, "Then I'll take my leave. Ja ne ero-san."

"Naruto!" The boy was gone from the office. "Ano kuzo… what is he up to?" The old man pondered near the window overlooking the village where shops and markets began to open with people beginning to occupy the streets.

* * *

Naruto decided to catch the morning rays by hopping from one roof to another. "Oh, I forgot my shirt." He started to shiver a bit. (**AN:** He magically does not notice he isn't wearing one, that actually happens to some people :P) "Why didn't anyone tell me?" Clearly forgetting what the Hokage said back in the office. "Mah! Still have 30 minutes!" He headed for his apartment.

With people awake and around, the ANBU decided to use his front door. Something made him step and hide around the corner. Glancing towards the route to his apartment, the Uchiha kid seemed to be making his way towards Naruto's home.

"Mattsu! What the hell does he want?!" He wanted to, with all his might; kick the Uchiha clear away from him. Concentrating hard, he repeated quickly, "He is a bowl of ramen! He is a bowl of ramen! He is a – wait, that means I love him, no, that won't work… He is an expired bowl of expired ramen! He is an expired bowl of ramen! He is an expired bowl of ramen!" _There I don't love or hate him!_ (**AN:** Yes Naruto will even eat expired ramen because he's cute like that!)

"Oi Sasuke!" Naruto hollered. Sasuke made a sideways turn to initiate his "cool" look. "Ohayo! Where's Sakura-chan?"

"Stop being so loud, dobe." Sasuke muttered, "And why the hell are you half-naked?!" Tracing his team mate's body he couldn't help but feel envious.

"Eh? I was just training." Naruto replied with a teeth-baring grin.

There was no response as the blonde the noticed the raven-haired one was staring at him making him feel awkward.

"Neh, neh, Sasuke, why are you here?" He feigned curiosity. _Expired bowl of ramen, expired bowl of ramen…!_

Looking away, Naruto thought he saw a tinge of red in his cheeks, the Uchiha finally replied, "There won't be training today."

"Eh… why?"

"Kakashi's on a mission, so training is cancelled but we're meeting up together tomorrow near the Hokage monuments." He briefly explained.

"Huh, when did he tell you? Today?"

The Uchiha promptly answered, "Yesterday after the mission."

"Oh… so he only told you." Naruto confirmed.

Sasuke darted his eyes at him again, "Is that a problem?"

Opening his apartment door the blonde shook his head and gave him a dazzling smile, "Of course not." A slight quiver went down Sasuke's body having felt that foreign feeling that was emitted from his comrade. "See you tomorrow then Sasuke-teme." With that he slammed the door on his team-mate's face.

"So… Spiky Hair has a favourite already huh?" Using his newly created nickname for Kakashi. "Figures… can't really expect much from that guy." The chilled air from the open window brought him back to realizing that he was in need of a shirt.

* * *

"So how'd it go with the kid's sensei?" Anko asked curiously when they were crammed into a cubicle at Ichriaku's.

Izumo, who had changed after returning the Sand kid, shrugged his shoulders, "The guy seemed surprised at first and after I explained _briefly_ what happened he still seemed shocked but not so obviously." He took a sip of tea.

"But that's to be expected." Genma spat out his toothpick and grabbed his chopsticks.

They turned to their captain who seemed quiet.

"We brought your shirt back." Anko placed it in front of him as the table creaked under the added weight. It took them a _bit_ of effort to pick it up from the ground.

"Domo." He didn't say any more.

The others were nervous to see his quiet form. _It's so unlike him._

_Maybe he's still thinking about that Sand kid._ Anko suggested.

Izumo momentarily shook his head, _Doesn't look like it, maybe it has something to do with Team 7 stuff._

_Or maybe we can ask him directly._ Genma received two looks that said "You ask him then!"

Clearing his throat, the man turned to Naruto. "Something up, Naruto?" He tried to make it sound casual.

The usual hyperactive child still remained silent; instead he rested his chin at the edge of the table with his mouth protruding into a pout. They were really dealing with a 12 year-old or maybe even a 5 year-old nonetheless with the way he was acting. Naruto blew out a sigh. "It's no use."

"Huh?" Why was their captain so hard to understand?

"OSSAN!" He yelled across the restaurant to the chef. The rest of the squad turned towards the counter as well, wondering what was going on. "Is there any way you can hurry up?! I'm going to die!!" There was a sudden loud rumbling coming from underneath the table.

_Usou!_ They were swamped into their despair for having thought that their captain's silence was due to something more serious than his lack of ramen.

Ayame came over with some small dishes and a ladle. Aiming, surprisingly, very accurately, she walloped (AN: Such a funny word ) the blonde in the head. "My father doesn't like to be rushed." She said with a smile sounding satisfied. After placing the dishes down, she went back to serving the other customers.

"Itai…" Naruto mumbled trying to nurse a growing bump at the top of his head.

_He really didn't see it coming… _Squad 3 watched, amused…_ Ichiraku's holds some pretty scary people…_ They silently applauded the owner and his daughter.

The rest of the breakfast was served and Naruto finally went to the point of why they were meeting. "Okay, so you all know that the Chuunin Exam is starting in a couple of days." They nodded; general knowledge was always an obligation with them. "The Sandaime has assigned several squads, including us, to overlook the exam as well as the surrounding perimeters that it is being held in. So… we can all meet up at my place later to talk of the plans." No questions were asked. "On another note, let's meet up on another day to finish up the training and the punishments since we won't have much time today and for the next few days." The others could only think of how their bodies are going to ache tomorrow.

Getting up, Naruto was about to leave when he put down some bills, "This one's on me."

They all stiffened, "No, it's okay taichou." Izumo said in a weakened voice. They don't know how much more torture they could withstand, "We got this one." Genma and Anko nodded as well with determined faces.

"Okay. Thanks for the food!" He smiled broadly and left.

"He's too unpredictable." They all mumbled.

* * *

The two options were simple tasks to Naruto. Deciding to choose both options has resulted in him having to be in three places at once. "This should be fun." He burned up the scroll that held the information for one of the decisions.

One of the missions was to find, more like retrieve, a certain sennin who had been wandering the countries for a while collecting information. Although the man may come back once in a while, the Sandaime needed the sennin to be back before the Chuunin Exam ended.

The other option was tied more into his long-term mission. Protect the Uchiha kid. As well as over-looking the exam areas to make sure outsiders do not interfere. But to be more specific… watching out for potential rival attacks since the exam is the ideal opportunity for the village to be exposed to other countries.

Smirking, Naruto knew that this was the perfect moment to test out his skills.

* * *

-Next day-

"He's late." Sakura paced back and forth repeatedly, irritating both guys.

"Again as usual." Naruto was unsurprised by the man's habits. "I bet we spend more time waiting for him than actually doing the missions.

"Hmph." Sasuke grunted with eyes closed, though unconsciously glancing at the blonde every so often.

It had already been three hours and Spiky Hair was nowhere to be seen. "He must be taking his time carefully gelling every piece of hair his big head can hold up." Naruto muttered but to his dismay was heard by Kakashi.

"Do you have something against that?" The man asked the undercover ANBU excruciatingly nicely.

"Of course I do what of it?" Naruto couldn't help but let a bit of his resentment to the man go.

"NARUTO!" Sakura bashed him in the head. "What the hell are you saying?!" The inner ego busted out of the pink shell.

Kakashi and Naruto stared at each other. Blue eyes to dark eye. Naruto closed his eyes and imagined the man in front of him to be Nozue. "I was just joking! HAHA! That's what you get for making us wait for three whole hours!" He pointed a finger at his "sensei" and laughed out loud. "I should get into acting… I'm actually pretty good." That earned him another bash on the head.

"Stop acting so stupid!"

"Why don't you stop acting like a love-struck girl and actually take being a ninja seriously?" He snapped back.

"Nani?!" Sakura was shocked to hear him say that. Usually, the boy in front of her would try to get back onto her good side instead of retorting back the way he just did.

A hand firmly gripped his shoulder, "Let go!" Naruto backed away from the rest of the team and quickly whispered, "I'll be back in a moment." He ran off.

They didn't know how to respond. The change in his personality and mood was too sudden. Kakashi examined his hand; there was nothing wrong with it, but when he touched the boy, the feeling of the Nine-Tails seemed very close.

Coming into the familiar clearing by the waterfalls, Naruto fell forward and calmly collected himself. "The damn fox." He gritted through his teeth. The presence of the Kyuubi seemed much more intimate than usual that it could draw on his chakra. Refusing to interact with the demon, Naruto had repeatedly "shunned" or ignored the existence of the Kyuubi within him in order to rely solely on his own strength.

Leaning on a tree trunk, Naruto gazed out to the lake, _If this continues… who knows what will happen…_

Someone suddenly appeared in front of him. "Yo." Naruto silently groaned at the familiar voice. "Here, catch." The masked ninja tossed him a water bottle. Though unwillingly, he caught the bottle and held it in his hands. "I told the two to go ahead with the job first." He explained briefly.

Naruto didn't respond nor cared.

"It's the Kyuubi right?" He sounded a bit worried but not to the point of revealing any emotions on his face.

"It's none of your business." Naruto answered rather rudely; irritated by the fact that he got it right.

Unmoving, his "sensei" remained standing, "I actually know someone who can help you out with that problem." He slowly said as though trying to remember. _The Fourth was one but now there's another, who can only be… Jiraiya. _With that, the whiskered boy's ears perked up. "Mah… he's pretty hard to track down so we should wait till he visits the village again." He continued on lazily.

Naruto could only shake his head, "Doesn't matter, I can handle it." Rolling the bottle in his hands, he pictured the man in front of him to be Nozue again. "Osu!" He got up and stretched about, beginning to act hyper again. "It's all good! I'm going to go join Sakura-chan and Sasuke-teme!" He ran towards the village again. "Arigatou Kakashi-sensei!" He called out.

Kakashi stared at the spot where Naruto sat. After a couple more seconds, he decided to see the Hokage before catching up with Team 7.

* * *

-Hokage's Office-

"So let me get this straight," Sarutobi crossed his fingers together and stared up at the Sharingan user, "You want to go find Jiraiya and bring him back here and no one else should know of this?" He relayed back to the man.

"It's actually not that hard to understand." Kakashi mumbled. _He really is getting old._ "I heard you wanted him to come back anyways, it should be more convenient if I go since I know the guy."

There was still a question nagging at him. "Why are you volunteering for this?"

A brief image of Naruto flashed in his mind but it quickly disappeared. "Is there a problem?"

"Of course not…" Sarutobi twirled around in his chair with a devilish grin. _Naruto should be _happy_ to have a companion along the way…_ He laughed triumphantly, which left Kakashi wondering if the old man has finally lost it.

Off in the distance, Naruto suddenly felt a tremor run through his body. _Somehow… there's this feeling that something _bad_ is going to happen._

* * *

**AN:** YOU SURVIVED! (either that or you just skipped to the end but i know you won't do that :) Pretty boring chapter really. I'm sorry if there are any mistakes!! The whole Kyuubi and the emotions thing is basically like in the original manga whenever Naruto experiences extreme amounts of emotion the demon's chakra is released blah blah blah…. I'm trying to make it so that Naruto's effort to seclude the fox promotes somewhat of a vice-versa effect or not in which the Kyuubi is drawing on Naruto's power in order to be released, thus influencing Naruto's emotion stability. Wow… I made Kakashi go out of his way to find Jiraiya (of course for our favourite character), but someone else is already on the job… OOOOOO!! Hope you survived… and I'm glad you did!! THANK YOU SO MUCH! I swear I'll TRY to make it so much more interesting next chapter… I don't when but within this year I hope! Haha!


	14. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer**: Tries to go and steal all the rights to Naruto and attempts to run away into the night only to be caught by (Mishimato)… I cry and say, "Naruto isn't mine!!!"

**AN:** Heh, heh, heh… I suck… Long time no update my fellow readers! It's been quite a while (Please don't hurt me )… You are all very patient readers as I'm sure there are many other great fanfictions out there for you to read to pass the time (No sarcasm seriously) :P I'd like to thank and apologize to all those who have been waiting for this chapter and have given great reviews! To be honest this delay is pretty much due to me being lazy…haha (head bows in shame) and encountering a ton of writer's blocks. I had to catch up with the latest chapters of Naruto (Soooo sad!) and other manga as well… heehee… Please read and try to enjoy this chapter :) Hope to see you by the end of this page (Giving you all a teeth-baring smile). P.S.( this website recently made uploading so confusing for me too because of their new layout and whatnot :P haha… I'm still such a noob- took me the longest time!)

* * *

It was an hour before the sun's peaking hour. Naruto was resting against the village gates, eyes closed, submerged in his thoughts. A note, from the Hokage the night before, was clenched in his fists that contained a message saying another ninja is going to accompany him on the mission. _What kind of joke is this?_ _I don't even know who I'm waiting for!_ In the next few minutes, several other villagers and ninjas gathered near the gates including Kakashi (Surprise! He's early!), who stood opposite of Naruto.

The ANBU carefully scanned the small crowd, examining each person but concluded that none of them was the one he was waiting for. He turned his gaze to Kakashi where they locked eyes. Wind blew silently past their awkward moment.

"Did you wake up several hours earlier just to gel every piece of hair on your head?" Naruto spoke first.

A wave of déjà vu hit Kakashi before he replied, "It's none of your business." _Leave my hair alone!_ He looked around for his partner in the mission. _Is it really necessary to have another person on this? _"Are you on a mission?" He asked out of simple curiosity.

"It's none of your business." Naruto promptly answered.

"Such a pipsqueak…" Kakashi muttered glancing away to the other side of the gate.

Eyebrows twitching, Naruto fumed at the man, being too sensitive about his height, "WHO ARE YOU CALLING A PIPSQUEAK WHO DOESN'T SHOW UP IN YOUR EYES?!"

"Oi! When did I ever say that--!?" Their watches began to beep.

Both scanned the growing crowd again for their supposed team-mate. Ten minutes passed without either of them realizing that their "partner" was already there.

"They're late!" They both said at the same time.

Hearing each other, their jaws clenched.

"Who the hell are you waiting for?!" They chorused together again.

"Heh! They must've come, seen you and left." Naruto commented.

"Perhaps, they came, saw how short you were and left." Kakashi offered his remark.

They wanted to avoid the only possibility that was offered to them. Slowly, yet progressing… it registered with them.

"Damn that perverted old man!" They both cursed the Sandaime.

Kakashi and Naruto began to close the gap between them in strides. "Look here, I don't need you on this mission with me, got that?" Naruto explained clearly.

Kakashi could only laugh sarcastically, "You're dealing with the toad sennin, like you have the ability to bring him back here."  
"What makes you think I can't?" Naruto retorted.

"Okay," Kakashi became more formal, "Where do you think Jiraiya is right now?"

"Kumogakure no sato (Hidden cloud village)." Naruto had gathered all the information on the whereabouts of the sennin but he could tell that the man won't sit quietly in one spot for too long.

His Team 7 sensei began to laugh sarcastically to display how Naruto's answer was wrong.

Naruto felt much annoyance towards the man, "And I suppose you know exactly where he is?"

Kakashi cracked his back, warming up, "Of course! I've known him for some time; it's pretty easy to track him down." Stretching his neck, he glanced at Naruto. "Therefore, you don't have to come with me on this mission."

"Fine. I won't go with you… wait… I don't even want to go with you. I'll bring him back before you're even halfway to wherever you're going." Naruto said calmly while making sure his Ninjaken was strapped tightly to his back.

"Do you want to bet on it?"

"Sure!" Naruto automatically agreed, "Whoever loses will have to do anything the winner requests." (AN: Which is only one request :P)

"Sounds good! I already have some ideas of what to make you do when I get back first." Kakashi pulled out his "arrogance card" proudly. "We'll have to make this official."

"I was thinking exactly the same thing." The supposed blonde- now brunette- drew up a scroll with the wager written on it. Letting Kakashi look over the contents, the man drew his own blood first, printed it on the page and handed it back to Naruto.

"This is your last chance to back out." Kakashi advised carefully with a smirk.

Cutting his thumb, Naruto grinned under his mask, "Heh! I won't go back on my word…" The bet was now official as Naruto made it disappear into smoke. He found himself being stared at curiously by Kakashi. "What now?"

The former ANBU captain could only look away with a nagging feeling in his mind with the phrase _"I won't go back on my word"_ echoing in his head."So when do you want to start?"

Naruto fixed his eyes to his watch, "Ten seconds." The man shrugged in response. They patiently waited for the time to count down. Five more seconds to go. "Don't you have a three-man team to take care of already?"

"Eh?" _How did he know? _Although many other shinobis have known that he had Team 7, hardly any ANBUs cared to learn of these miniscule things. "Are you stalking me?" He could feel a sudden menacing glare coming from the ANBU.

"Who would want to stalk you anyways?" The watch beeped. "Baka!" Naruto vanished from sight along with Kakashi who was cursing the boy.

Trailing back to the Hokage's room, Sarutobi leaned back in his chair reliving a sigh after watching the encounter through his crystal ball. "No need to thank me." He grinned, falling into a nap.

* * *

**-Back to Naruto Clones (The one taking the exam and ANBU) (OMG NOT THESE THINGS AGAIN!!!)-**

_Only one day's notice, he's pretty responsible_. Naruto sarcastically applauded the jounin after they received the registration papers. They were given a choice by Kakashi to choose whether or not they want to take the Chuunin Exam and left without another word giving them only hours to decide. _I never really got the chance to take it before_. He mused while he made his way back to the apartment. _This should entertain me_. The clone sank into the bed, waiting for morning to come.

"Oi." The other clone clad in ANBU gear nudged the one on the bed. "I'm going out for duty now."

"Haiii…"

"Don't forget to turn off the stove after you make ramen in the morning."

"You don't have to remind me, I'm you so I'll remember." Both clones stared at each other in silence. _This is… awkward._

_**Next Day**__:_

-_Sigh-_ There was scribbling sounds surrounding him –_Sigh-_ There was a cough and more scribbling. ­–_Sighhh-_ Looking straight down at the table Naruto saw a piece of paper, not just any paper, but a _test_ paper. "Naze?" A girl with pupil-less eyes turned to look at him. "Why…?!" He said a bit more angrily. His hand shook, _I hate tests!_ _I'm too lazy to write tests._ Looking around the room he saw many heads down, some scratching their temples, others grabbing their head as though they didn't know what to do. He felt someone still staring at him. Glancing to his right he gave the girl, Hyuuga Hinata, a wide smile and quickly turned away hoping she'll stop gazing at him the whole time.

Izumo was seated towards the left of him, clipboard in hand, marking names off. _Lucky, he only has to make check-marks._ He glared at his team-mate.

The one-eyed ANBU felt uncomfortable… no… that was an understatement… _excruciatingly_ uncomfortable. Making the effort to look up, he saw his captain giving him dagger looks which made him shiver. _It's not my fault you have to take the test…_ The blue eyes didn't look away. _You're the one who chose to do this, taichou_. Finally finding the strength to turn away, Izumo proceeded with his "jounin" duties.

Discovering Izumo was ignoring him, Naruto faced the front to see Morino Ibiki, a man who he greatly respected. He once had to go through his testing to show if each ANBU member can withhold information through mental torture. Fortunately for Naruto and the rest of Squad 3, they passed with much exhaustion and painful memories. His interrogation skills were enough to have the suspect submit according to his command as though their will was in his control. _I can learn a few things from him_… He mused again, not planning to lift his hand to pick up the pencil.

Naruto scanned the room full of shinobis once again. At the side he spotted Gaara performing a jutsu creating a third eye. _It's doesn't seem like he's here to earn a vest._ The sand nin's eyes shot at him. _Those eyes… it's so hard to tell… are they mint green or light blue? Light bluish green or light greenish blue? Huh…_ Naruto tilted his head side-to-side pondering the simple question while Gaara could only watch the blonde from afar. Several seconds passed till Gaara carried on with manoeuvring the third eye.

It was 10 minutes before the final question commenced. Morino Ibiki gazed around the room slowly and observantly. He noticed several shinobis have successfully discovered the true meaning of the test while others still had panicked looks on their faces. The Rookie 9 seemed to be holding up pretty well in his opinion, except for the blonde who seemed to not have picked up his pencil even once. A moment ago he found the boy staring at him with piercing blue eyes, which reminded him of that ANBU.

_The room was only brightened by the tiny lamp centered in the ceiling; the only furniture that occupied the area was a chair. Several other members from the Torture and Interrogation Force were situated around the room as though guarding that one individual. He was the first for Squad 3, the last group to take the test. They always say to target the head of the group… once they are defeated the rest will crumble. Several squads have failed due to at least one member in their team who had given up the information; few have passed. In the sheer 15 minutes, he can make the interrogation seem like hours, days or even weeks, that was the beauty of his skills… attacking the human mind. _

_The one being questioned bore the kitsune mask Ibiki once remembered was worn by none other than Asako Nozue, an ANBU he only knew as the dangerous spy. Freely seated in the chair, the ANBU Captain silently waited for the torture to begin. The ANBUs were given the choice as to whether they were okay with their masks being removed. This was the first individual who requested to not have his mask removed._

_Feeling curious, Ibiki asked, "Why?"_

_The ANBU seemed to smile, "That's your job to find out isn't it?" The 27 year-old couldn't help but grin. _This will be interesting.

_Flipping through the files to quickly gather some information on the "suspect", Ibiki discovered that the ANBU was merely 12 years-old. However, the air of childishness and immaturity wasn't present around his surrounding; instead the sense of maturity replaced that charisma. _Guess the Uchiha kid isn't the only prodigy._ He thought to himself. Ibiki handed the files back to one of his subordinates, while another started the clock._

_"Let's begin."_ (**AN:** I won't include the process since I'm not one for torturing and interrogating haha… so I have no idea how to make people succumb to others… or do I?)

_13 minutes have passed and the only thing that the proctor could get out of the ANBU was a casual response or a shrug of the shoulders. The mask was constantly facing the man as though following his every move, whereas others would usually avoid eye contact. Ibiki, while interrogating, constantly examined any sudden changes in the ANBU's body language or voice that he could use for his advantage. The untied hands and feet were calm and unmoving, the heart-rate was normal and there were no signs of any sweating. It made it seem as though the ANBU was having a laid-back conversation with the interrogator. _

_"I must admit, you're pretty good." The big bear-like man commented as he circled the room._

_Staring just straight ahead the ANBU laughed, "Why thank you." _

_Meeting eye contact once again, Ibiki chuckled, "Too bad we can't use physical force on you."_

_There was silence for a while. "To be honest, you've already done a lot of damage to me." The ANBU Captain admitted. "I'm glad that Konoha holds such a great commanding officer like you. I wonder why they call you a sadist."_

_"I can say the same for you. But even though you've _almost_ survived this test doesn't mean the rest of your squad will." _

_Deep cerulean eyes looked intently at the officer through the mask-holes, "They will survive." The interrogator master was surprised by the trust and confidence that the captain placed on his squad. Looking away the ANBU added, "If they don't… I'll have to think of something then… haha…" Shivers ran down the bear man's back. _And I wonder why they _don't_ call you a sadist…

--Beep-- Beep--

_Standing up straight, the ANBU gave a small salute to Ibiki and exited the door. _What an amazing kid…_ Ibiki remarked as his assistants called for the next person to come in, unaware that on the other side of the door the ANBU Captain stood trembling slightly, a bit of sweat running down the side of his head. Being true to his words, the rest of the squad passed all masks intact with painful memories and experiences. _

_"Squad 3… is strong." Other officers of the Torture and Interrogation Force commented. Even though the last three ANBUs showed more signs of being tortured they still held on._

_"Ah…"_ _The man simply said. _

Only a minute till the tenth question was set out. Many pencils have been set down and many others scribbling faster within the milliseconds. Till then, Ibiki noticed the spiky blonde picking up the pencil for the first time. Looking away to watch the clock, the seconds counted down to… "Ok and now, we will begin the 10th question." His voice rumbled causing some to shake in their chairs.

Naruto twirled the hated pencil in his fingers ignoring the examiner's added rules to the tenth question. _Boring…_ In the background voices were arguing. "If you choose to take it and answer incorrectly…" "What kind of stupid rule is that?!" Several seconds later, participants began to leave the room with their team-mates. _I'm hungry… I want to eat ramen… ramen… _"Shimatta!" His fist slammed the desk loudly. _I think I forgot to turn off the stove when I made ramen this morning!_

"N…Na…Naruto?" The timid voice made him jump having forgotten about Hinata sitting beside him.

_Damn… I said it out loud_… The whole room was focussed on him… _What now…?_ Clearing his throat he presented wide goofy grin, "Ha…!" _What were they talking about again? _Sakura and Sasuke were sweating bullets wondering what Naruto was doing. _Ah. Sou…_ "I'm not going to run away! I'll become the Hokage either way!"

Ibiki menacingly asked the question again, "This is the decision of your life, are you sure you want to take this?"

"Heh, of course… I never back down from my word!" Naruto finished off. _Whew… saved myself from that…_

The classroom had a very intense vibe circling them.

"To the 78 who remain congratulations on passing the first test!" Ibiki announced loudly with a pleasant smile as Naruto hopefully wished he hadn't set his apartment on fire.

Something suddenly made his ears perk up. _Oh no…_ Naruto sweatdropped when a gust of wind blew in along with a black clump that could only be…

"ARRIVING!!!" The tomboyish voice of Anko's echoed throughout the room. (**AN:** I made Anko say her favourite saying ^^) She saw Naruto give her an expressionless face as though he did not know her. Small irritated marks appeared on the back of her head while Naruto shook his head slightly away covering his face in embarrassment. _T-ta-taichou…! _Ignoring him for now she proceeded with her duty, "This is no time to be celebrating! I am the examiner for the second test Mitarashi Anko!!! Now follow me!!!"

Naruto was now feigning a fake smile at her as her entrance failed to entice the participants in a non-weird way. _Such messy writing…_ the blonde referred to the black cloth that she forcefully hung. _I can't believe she's an ANBU… let alone in my squad… and she's not even pretending to be herself.._. _How does the old man read her reports?_ An image of the Hokage appeared in his head which said, "I don't even attempt to look at them."

Ibiki emerged from behind the sign with a disgruntled expression, "Bad timing." Izumo couldn't help but sputter a laugh behind his clipboard. A deathly aura filled the room heading towards the right-eye covered man.

"There's too many left…" The "aura" hovered over Anko's team-mate threateningly. "… At least the second test will cut the number down to at least half. I'm getting excited already." Her face was now hidden in the shadows creeping out the others in the room. The room began to empty but Izumo could only stay in place not being able to move. Taking the moment where Ibiki had stepped out of the room for a brief moment, Anko released her threat upon Izumo. What remained was a man sprawled on the floor cursing his team-mate… _Damn you short woman!_

The first testing area was now free of all bodies except for one who was now picking up the tests that remained on the tables. Picking one up in particular, his eyes widened slightly. _If I remember correctly… this is where that blonde sat…_ A flash of Naruto's face shone in his mind… _There was only a minute left… _Remembering the first time he picked up his pencil was in those last 60 seconds… _Yet he managed to finish each question correctly without even having to cheat…_ _Uzumaki Naruto…_ Before he could finalize a conclusion he heard some movement. Passing through the chairs and desks he saw Izumo laying there with a disgruntled face. "You look comfortable..." He joked knowing the reason why he was in that position.

"Urusai ne!" Izumo could only mumble having his whole body paralyzed, "I'm going to kill her!"

Retreating back towards the door, the examiner laughed, "Good luck with that." And he was gone.

"W-WA-WAITT!!!" His last hope of getting out of his situation sooner was lost.

**­

* * *

**

**-Back to Naruto and Kakashi**

"Damn." Stepping out of the last bar in town, Naruto felt a tad bit defeated. He already drained every bit of information of Jiraiya out of every single person in the Cloud Village. "If Spiky Hair gets to Jiraiya before me I'd rather give up ramen than follow what that gel-obsessed man tells me to do." Naruto gritted through his teeth. "No… not ramen… anything but ramen…" Before he could continue his self-rant, there was a tap on his shoulder. Straightening up before turning he wished to Kami-sama that it wasn't someone he knew. "Eh? Can I help you?" There was a middle-aged drunken old man who stood wobbly in front of him.

"Heard you're –HIC- lookin' for Jiraiya- HIC- no?" Naruto nodded still in shock that he was talking to a drunk in broad daylight. "You seem like a nice boy so I'll tell ya okay?" Making a toothy grin he whispered to the ANBU quietly, "Good fellow… treated me to a couple of drinks and before he left he said he was going to Takumi no Sato… heeheehee." He quickly covered his mouth as though he was afraid that the information would get him into trouble.

"Ojisan!" Someone shouted from a distance. Before Naruto could turn to see who it was, the person had arrived in front of them already. "How many times have I told you to stop running away from the hospital? And drinking sake!?" She pinched the man on his arm. Naruto could tell she was in her late 20s but what caught his interest were the dark marks on her face. There were two strips that ran downward from the middle of the cheek to the side of the face, similar to the Inuzuka Clan's but different. Her light brown hair was put up in a ponytail and she was now currently dragging the patient by the ear.

"ITAI!!! It hurts Rin-chan!" The drunkard yelled trying to get away. "Boy, boy! Help me!"

"Are you a ninja, Rin-san?" Naruto asked straightforwardly ignoring the man's cries for rescue.

The woman paused in her steps. "You're from Konohagakure right?"

"Ah."

"Then I have nothing to say, excuse me." She continued on while seething about how the man was having an eye surgery soon and shouldn't be going on drinking alcohol.

Naruto stood, still watching their backs, "…" _Can I believe that guy?!_

**With Kakashi:**

"Chikusho… he's not here." Kakashi believed the pervert-sennin would wander around the Grass Country but it seemed like he was wrong. "Damn! I can't let that shortie get to him first!" His thoughts ran through their bet not realizing that he came upon a grand bamboo forest.

Coming to a slow stop, Kakashi sighed and looked around the surroundings remembering the past. "Obito… Rin…" He situated himself on the spot for a few more minutes till he managed to bring himself out of the haunting forest.

The sun was beginning to set already yet the scarecrow man didn't have any new leads as to where the sennin has gone to. "This won't do…" Cutting his thumb along with creating some seals he summoned, "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" his Ninken. A ninja dog with the Henohenomoheji design on its back appeared as Kakashi crouched down to its level, "Help me track down that pervert sennin."

* * *

**-Back to Naruto Clones (The one taking the exam and ANBU)-**

"Kowai…" Sakura failed to hide her fear of the Forest of Death.

Team 7 stood with the rest of the participants at the entrance of the second test. Naruto had used the excuse to use the bathroom as a chance to check if his house was on fire. _Thank kami-sama…_

"You'll soon find out why it's called the Forest of Death." Anko smirked at the bunch.

"Sooo original…" Naruto said out loud. "Isn't it basically a forest where there are things that could easily kill you?"

Laughing sarcastically she grabbed her kunai out and threw the weapon towards her captain. _Taichou… you're not helping at all!_

"Oto… Sakura-chan, it's dangerous." He dragged the pink-haired kunoichi into the line of fire.

"NARUTO!" Sakura shrieked immensely causing the creatures in the forest to become unsettled. Pushing her away just in time, Naruto caught the kunai with a finger.

"What the hell are you trying to do woman?! You nearly killed my team-mate!" Naruto yelled at the pupil-less woman.

"What the hell are _you_ doing?!" Sakura bashed the blonde on the head.

"All right before we start I need you to sign these agreement forms." Anko passed the papers around in which they all signed.

_Sigh… five days with an annoying girl and a loner… great…_ Securely hiding the "Heaven" scroll away, Team 7 ventured off into the forest. Being the last to enter, Naruto took one last look at a particular Grass team… _It feels like his chakra…_

After settling a mist ninja and creating a codeword, not a few more steps Naruto could sense the chakra again. _Hmm…_ He knew that Sasuke knew that the ninja was hiding underground listening in on their conversation, and the only opportunity where he would reveal himself to the other two was when he left the scene. Sure enough he was "attacked" and is now facing a giant snake who could only be summoned by him…

"Having trouble?" Naruto rolled his eyes to the ANBU clone. "Go back to the team I'll take care of things here." The ANBU jumped down while Naruto went back. Taking out his ninjaken the fight began and ended with the slice of the metal.

Perching on a tree branch, Naruto just witnessed Sasuke and Sakura being struck with a genjutsu causing them to go into shock. Taking the opportunity, he took off and landed right on top of Sasuke. "Oops, did that hurt?" Naruto asked with a wide smile.

"Baka!" Sasuke was annoyed by his team-mate's taking of their situation; however the impact made him come back to reality. "He isn't a normal opponent! He's on a totally different level!"

"Hn… Is that so?" The blue-eyed frowned while rubbing his chin. "Give me the scroll."

"Nani?!" The raven-haired boy retorted.

"Just for now okay?" _Before you go giving it up… geez…_ Naruto gave his best confident-like smile.

With a grunt the Uchiha quickly passed him the scroll.

"Are you done now?" The "Grass" nin appeared inches away from the group.

"Almost." Naruto said lightly while securing the paper roll. This only triggered the man to wipe a line of blood across the tattoo on his left arm to summon a snake to knock the blonde away. "Uwahh!!" Dodging just in time while the others avoided it as well. Spotting the man, Naruto made his way up to where he situated on the snake. "Pretty skin you have on." He managed to cut the man's face, leaving a gash where blood did not seem to run down.

The man scowled at the boy, "Ah, if memory serves me you're the Kyuubi vessel aren't you?" The others were too far down to hear him say it.

"Yeah and what?"

A clone came behind up from the back to hold him while the "Grass" nin performed a Fuin Jutsu. Before the nin could commence the seal, someone laughed beside him.

"These old-school tricks are really old you know…" Naruto brought a blue flame around his arm and grabbed the man's face. "…Orochimaru."

"AHHH!" The snake man tried to salvage the deteriorating skin but it was useless. "Kisama!" He glared at the boy while his last piece of stolen skin fell to the ground. Orochimaru was still wondering whether this boy was as stupid as others had said. Adjusting his hitaite with the Sound Village symbol, the sennin laughed. "Kuzo… you're forgetting one thing." Raising his arm, "You're stepping on my snake." He swung down his arm as he took off while his summoned beast attempted to swallow the blonde whole.

Sasuke had activated his Sharingan to see what was going on but before he knew it, the same man that had attacked them was flying towards them with a seemingly different face. "Shimatta! Sakura watch out!" The two genins jumped out of Orochimaru's way. Getting into a fighting stance the Uchiha was about to attack.

"Too bad I don't have enough time to test out your skills but I'm sure that they are as just as good as your brother's." Orochimaru smiled sadistically towards him.

This caused the ears to perk up at the mention of his brother, "Omai… who the hell are you?!" He demanded angrily.

"Fufufu… my name is Orochimaru, someone who could give you the power that you seek." He lured with his silky voice catching Sasuke with his words.

Drunken in the bait that Orochimaru set out, Sasuke didn't realize the man had already created some seals that caused his neck to extend towards him. "SASUKE!" Sakura alerted the Uchiha somehow not being able to do anything about it. The fangs sunk into his neck. Grinning in succession of marking his next victim, Orochimaru retreated back into his normal neck size.

"Just a little present from me—." His victim disappeared into smoke as well as the girl. "Nani?!" Looking for the source of trouble in his plans, he spotted Naruto once again facing directly towards him. "Kuzo… who exactly are you?" The snake man's eyes narrowed in curiosity as though scanning the boy for more information. He could sense his prized snake was sent back to its realm. It's a challenge to manage such a feat in mere seconds.

The blue flame surrounding his arm had dissipated but the ones in his eyes remained. "You don't have to know." Taking a step towards the missing-nin, the man unconsciously moved back slightly. "Scared?"

His teeth clenched tightly together having been slightly intimidated by a 12 year-old. Coughing up Kusanagi, the metal glinted in the minimal sunlight that was leaking into the forest. He sprung towards the boy at a sharp speed, "You're just asking for death!"

Naruto could only smirk. "Maybe I am." They clashed in center.

* * *

_"Sasukeee!" _The childish female scream rang in his head while the image of Orochimaru extending his neck towards him haunted his vision. _Am I dead? This can't be happening… I… I have to kill him!!_ _I can't be dead…_ Dark eyes shot open staring up towards the branches of the grand trees belonging to the Forest of Death. Sasuke noticed he was taking short panting breaths while cold sweat ran down the side of his face. Calming down he turned his head left and right, spotting Sakura a few feet away from him still seemingly unconscious. "What happened?" All he could remember was Orochimaru attacking them and then it was black.

It was quiet; too unusual, as if something was missing. "Naruto…" Believing the blonde's hair and orange jumpsuit would be spotted easily, his team-mate was nowhere to be seen. "Dammit, where'd that dobe…" Stopping mid-sentence, Sasuke reflected back on the last couple of fights, "Dobe… are you really that stupid?"

"Sasukeee!" Sakura sprang up from where she lay. Her whole body was shivering, skin prickling and pale. Looking around and realizing where they were she sighed a relief to see Sasuke in an un-dead state. "Sasuke…" Joining the Uchiha they both observed their surrounding, "Where are we? Where's Naruto?"

There was a roaring echoing from a distance; turning their attention towards the source of the disturbance, they spotted a massive snake emerging, overlooking the forest. "What the hell…?" Sasuke could only utter at the moment as Sakura gripped his arm tightly. "Let's go." He forcefully pried the girl's hands away from him as he jumped off from branch-to-branch. _Naruto… you better stay alive!_

"M-ma-matte!" Sakura quickly tried to catch up.

"Fufufu… Maybe I should consider you as my new target." Orochimaru licked his lips with an anticipating smile, watching Naruto while perched on top of Manda. "It'd be rude of me to leave now but…" The snake began to raise its tail, "… I have some matters to attend to."

"Shimatta…" Naruto dodged with Shunpo as dirt and rocks flew everywhere masking his vision. He knew he was gone by now, but Naruto certainly knew where he was headed. Ears perking, Naruto quickly sprang off towards some branches to meet up with the rest of Team 7. _Anko…_ Something caught his attention out the corner of his eye; Naruto decided to take a short detour getting ready to earn the team an "Earth" scroll while sending his other clone new information about the "Orochimaru" he had just encountered.

_"As you can see… they have no faces. They're blank… as if they were melted off." Izumo was standing with her without any means of revenge for before. He bore a very cautious expression as well as a concerned eye for Anko. Kotetsu continued, but the Hebi mask-bearer could only think of one person. _"Orochimaru!" She growled while ricocheting off another tree. She had passed off instructions to the Chuunins outside the borders of the forest as she set off to go after the snake man.

_"Anko…" Izumo could only warn her at the moment having to follow the others to inform the Sandaime. "Be careful." She could only send him a quick nod before leaving without another sound. _

"I've been waiting for this day…" Anko managed to slide four needles down from her sleeve, readying herself, "… to destroy you once and for all, Orochimaru."

Emerging from the tree trunk upside-down, the snake man laughed, "That's impossible."

Springing away from where she stood, Anko quickly directed the needles towards her ex-sensei. Orochimaru lengthened his tongue to catch Anko in his grip. Quickly using her "Shadow Snake Hand" technique, she managed to drag the sennin out of his hiding place and within her grasp. Grabbing a kunai from her sleeve she embedded the weapon into both their hands. "Heh, caught you." She snarled at the man, regretting that the last person she would ever see was Orochimaru. Initiating Souja Sousai no Jutsu with the help of his left hand, Anko could only focus on destroying the man before her.

"Anko." The familiar voice steered her attention to behind her. "He's over here." Anko quickly veered her head towards the speaker as her victim vanished into smoke; standing with his sword against the pale neck of the real Orochimaru was her captain. "And I thought I was about to lose a good team-mate." He added casually. "You acted too rashly this time, Anko."

Freeing herself from her kunai, Anko faced Naruto with an annoyed expression. "This has nothing to do with you taichou." She growled at the ANBU captain. "This is between me and that man!" She spat preparing herself to attack directly towards them reading her team-mate's eye movements.

"Hm." Orochimaru managed to break free of Naruto's grip, "Thank you for talking so long." He kicked the ANBU towards a mass of trees leaving a trail of broken branches and fluttering leaves in the air.

Anko raised her readied weapon, using Shunshin no Jutsu to allow her to disappear briefly with leaves surrounding her vanishing. _Your mine!_ The woman struck from behind her ex-sensei only to be stabbed by Kusanagi midway and pinned against a tree trunk, sword still intact.

"Fufufu… though I hardly cared for you at all, I was your sensei once before." Orochimaru twisted the sword causing Anko to utter a scream in blinding pain. Blood was slowly yet voluminously flowing down her body; Anko tried hard to pry herself away from her situation but could only go as far as glare at the man in front of her. "You fail yet again." He roughly and savagely released Kusanagi causing Anko to spurt blood from her wound as she fell towards the ground growing unconscious by the milliseconds till it was dark. _Kai!_ Finally realizing she was struck with a genjutsu, Anko immediately broke the curse.

Nearly faltering in her steps, Anko controlled the bile that was rising in her throat from the illusion. Still in attack mode, realization hit her as she leaped forward. The snake man released himself from Naruto's clutch as he kicked him away. Following the illusion, she vanished out of Orochimaru's line of vision using Shunshin no Jutsu. The man sensed the woman striking from behind as he readied his sword to counter while the remaining swirling leaves fluttered in her place. Fixing Kusanagi through his ex-student, Orochimaru laughed at the naivety of Anko's attack. "You fail---." Before he could finish, a tearing pain could be felt piercing through his back.

"I was your student once before, Orochimaru…" She twisted the kunai causing him to grunt, "… don't forget that." Forcing him to face her, she grabbed his hand initiating Souja Sousai Jutsu wanting to end it all forever.

The man stared her in the eye, expressionless. The veins at his temples pulsed seemingly as though he was forming a plan at that moment. "If only I could applaud you for this sudden turn of events, too bad you still can't tell between a clone and the real person themselves."

Anko instantly turned pale, gritting her teeth, "Still a coward who can't risk hurting his own body…" She continued to tear the man internally, angry at him… at herself. Their hands were still connected with Anko still contemplating whether she should stop. The man grinned before her, watching his ex-student struggle mentally.

"You shouldn't be hesitating..." Orochimaru advised her silkily; Anko became rigid giving him an opening to attack. Lifting his hand, Kusanagi freed itself from the tree and straight through the woman. "… Or you'll get killed instead."

"Ch-ch-chikusho!" Anko cursed loudly feeling the sword tear through her heart as darkness engulfed her. "CHIKUSHOOO!" She suddenly found herself sitting upright on a grand tree branch, staring up at the barely seeping in sunlight. There were beastly calls echoing in the surroundings around her, stirring uncomfortably due to her outburst. Noticing she was free from any kind of injuries, questions raced repeatedly in her mind. "N-nani?" She grabbed her head in confusion unable to tell if she was still in an illusion world or reality, "What's going on?!" Ears perked up hearing a familiar presence; she quickly threw a kunai towards the shadowed trees. "Why…?" Emerging was her captain, her kunai caught in between his fingers. "Why are you stopping me from killing the man I hate the most in my life?!" In that instant, she sorrowfully wanted to stab her captain more than the sennin. "It was just a clone…" Anko mumbled miserably; she realized that Naruto managed to destroy that clone. "I let him escape… again."

Naruto slowly made his way over to her, stopping in front of her while he took off his mask. Seating himself next to his team-mate, he took a deep breath letting the wind freshen up his face. "Is this… about revenge?" He asked slowly still staring away from her.

"N…" Stopping midway, Anko couldn't help but touch her neck where Orochimaru had implanted the Cursed Seal years ago. She couldn't find the effort to answer anymore, knowing he wouldn't understand.

"What would I know, right?" Naruto posed the question she wanted to spit out. "Just like you, I want him dead, perhaps not as much as you do but the feelings are mutual." A brief image of Nozue flashed in his mind which pained him to remember.

"I'm merely performing my duties." Anko retorted emotionlessly, "If there is an outsider who disrupts this exam, I have the duty to stop them at all costs."

"Hai, hai… and of course I don't have the right to stop you, the examiner, but as a team-mate I can't let you sacrifice yourself for someone who couldn't even use his real body to carry out his own missions."

"He seemed so real just like taichou's—" Anko tried to reason hopelessly. "Joutou Bunshin no Jutsu…" She whispered to herself. "But how does he know how to use that?" Believing only Naruto knew how to perform the technique. The rest of the squad had tried countless times to perform the jutsu successfully but it never worked to its full potential like their captain's.

Naruto didn't respond immediately. _He completed it after that time…_ He thought to himself, thinking back to the time where they met after their mission. _Che…_ Running his hand through his hair, Anko could see how young, yet grown-up, he looked from where she seated. "Revenge…" He muttered quietly. "If we were to go an eye for an eye to exact our revenge, it would make this whole world go blind. You must understand that not everything will go your way, even if you really want it to." Naruto advised her softly.

Anko found herself absorbing all the words that came out of his moth, subconsciously surprised how a 12 year-old seemed to hold such meaning to his words as though he had already experienced them first hand already- unbeknownst to her that he really did.

"Oto…" Naruto stood back up replacing his mask back onto his face, hair turning brunette once again, "We should go back and see what the old man is planning to do." Anko nodded and joined him.

Skimming through the trees together, Anko couldn't help but admire how calm and mature the ninja beside her was. _I hope that I'll always be able to fight along side you, Naruto…_

"Something on your mind?" The ANBU casually inquired.

Clearing her throat to straighten out her thoughts she answered promptly with another question, "How did you know I was there, let alone know I'll go after Orochimaru?" Though a proud woman she deeply respected and looked up to her captain and the question had probed her mind since they had taken off.

"As the head of the squad I am inclined to know how my team-mates will react to certain situations based on their personalities, and you with your past history with Orochimaru… it's pretty straightforward." Noticing her silent response he added, "Crazy woman trying to catch a snake, pretty easy to locate." He explained in a matter-of-fact tone.

"Nani? Crazy!?" Her eyebrows twitched at such a description of herself. "I'm not crazy!"

"But certainly not sane either." Naruto added more fuel to the fire.

Teeth began to gnaw together creating an audible sound for Naruto to hear.

The masked ninja chuckled as he immediately sped up to escape from her grasps, "Heh, heh…" As they both ran through the heavily-dimmed forest effortlessly while avoiding beastly creatures, Naruto pondered whether or not to tell her the truth about the encounter with "Orochimaru".

_By the time Anko had entered the forest, the sennin's clone had already been destroyed by Naruto before he could come face-to-face with her. Knowing the after-effects of the Jouto Bunshin no Jutsu, Naruto knew that Orochimaru would go into hiding to recuperate. True to his words, Naruto knew that Anko would head into the forest head-on without caring for the outcome. And based on her individuality she will never accept the fact that Orochimaru had sent, yet, another clone of him without witnessing it herself. In the end, he decided to simulate the possible encounter by creating an illusion around the area, using up a good amount of his chakra. But at least he was able to talk to Anko when she was calmed down._

_Gome, Anko…_ Naruto decided, in the end, he couldn't bring himself to tell her the truth.

* * *

**-Back to Naruto and Kakashi-**

Naruto had heard many rumours on whether the village he just entered really did exist. But after walking past its gates, all was clarified. It was a pretty well hidden village in Naruto's opinion. Looking around the would-be market of Takumi Village, there were many people who seemed to want to hide their identities like he was doing with masks, cloaks and of the sorts. Displayed in the small to medium-sized stalls lay various weaponry in numerous amounts. Ranging from plain and ordinary to intricately designed and rare, Naruto couldn't help but stall his search for Jiraiya to look at the artefacts.

Most of the stalls had interested customers milling over items as the owners monitored closely, disallowing any chances of thievery. One particular stall managed to capture his attention. It seemed to be the most ordinary of the rest with only a white banner with the words "Swords" hung at its front. However, the owner didn't seem to mind that he wasn't receiving any customers as he read scrolls leisurely. He only seemed remotely surprised to find someone standing in front of his stall but after saying a quick "welcome" he returned to studying the scrolls piled by his side.

To passer-bys and buyers, the swords displayed were definitely dull and unappealing. But somehow an invisible sensation prevented him from leaving. His hand automatically reached out to pick up a particular sword that looked practically the same as the others around him. "Hm?" The man had put his reading on hold and was curiously studying the ANBU with one eye as the other bore an eye patch.

Naruto didn't notice the sudden attention from the owner; his only focus was the sword in his hands. The sheath was plain but he ignored the simple details as he continued to the handle. Without looking up, "Can I?" He quietly asked the owner for permission to unsheathe the weapon.

"Ho… tousen." The owner nodded, very intrigued.

Breathing slowly, Naruto swiftly slid sheath and blade separately producing a sounding ring that could only be audible to him at that moment.

It was a masterpiece.

Bringing the blade close to his face, its sharpness, balance… he could sense the power lurking in its metal.

"Omoshiroi…" Blue eyes transfixed themselves behind the counter. "This is the first time Sandai Kitetsu has been picked up first by a customer."

Shifting his concentration to the man, Naruto felt more curious by the second. "Hm?"

"There aren't many wielders who are able to tell whether the sword is of good quality or not." He answered huskily. "And even if they did manage to pick up the Sandai Kitetsu after they've gone through a couple others, they either don't recognize its value or they buy it and meet their final fate." Naruto noted a hint of laughter in the man's last few words.

"Final fate?"

The man scratched his chin with a small grin displayed on his face, "You can put it this way…" He pointed a finger at the sword, "… it has a mind of its own with a temper and after the first few incidents people began to believe that it was cursed… since everyone who ever used that sword… are all dead. " The shopkeeper waited for the customer to drop the weapon and leave like many others have done before him but the kitsune-mask remained still examining the hilt.

"Curse, ka?" Naruto felt excited having found such a rare item. "I'll take it." He finally said, "How much?"

The man gave him an unreadable expression, "Heh… I'll give it to you for free." He liked the aura that emitted from the shopper. "Even if you die, it will somehow make its way back here. But if you survive its fate, then I'm finally glad that it has finally chosen its owner." He added lightly. "To be honest, it has been lying around for so long ever since Seimei, our founder, crafted that and the first two."

Naruto strapped his second sword onto his back along with his ninjaken, Shuusui. "Arigatou gozaimasu." He gave the man a bow before leaving.

"Wish you luck then." The man responded with a wide grin, watching the cursed sword leave his sight probably for the last time.

Naruto couldn't wait to test out his new weapon but groaned when he remembered why he was even at the village in the first place. However, he sensed that he was being targeted when walking through the crowds. _How troublesome…_ Looking forward, he saw a small throng of people surrounding a stage. Apparently there was a competition and the winner had received a rare sword. Air hitched in his throat when he saw who had won.

Standing with his prize, Kakashi seemed satisfied to have won it. _How the hell did he know to come here?!_ Irritation marks appeared around Naruto's head, _And when will he ever use that sword?!_ _What a waste… But this isn't good; I still don't have any leads on Jiraiya… _Suddenly, a plan formed in his head.

Out of the corner of his eye, Kakashi spotted the familiar white, spiky hair making his way over to a building with the sign "Hot Baths" and entered. _That's Jiraiya for you._ Gripping his newly won sword, the jounin jumped down the stage quickly and manoeuvred around the crowd whose attention was back to the stage when another piece of weaponry was up for a prize.

Getting past the receptionists unnoticed, Kakashi managed to catch a glimpse of the man, clad in a towel, passing through a sliding door. Making himself seem discreet, the Sharingan-user slipped inside to find the room empty at the moment. Quickly, he opened the door leading to the hot springs.

He felt hot. Not from the heat but at the many eyes that belonged to _women_!

_Shimatta…!_ "Hontou sumimasen---"

"KYAAA!!!" "GET OUT!"

"Iie! It's not like that…" A smack was heard.

"HENTAI!" "GET OUT!"

"… it's an accident…!" Splashes of water was heard.

"DON'T LET HIM GET AWAY!"

"… Jo… Jotto matte… I thought you told me to get out!" One managed to knee him in his most vital area. "…" Though a strong ninja in nature, he could not escape the grasps of the angry women.

_It's not like there was anything interesting to see in there…_ Kakashi thought miserably while lying sprawled on the street dripping wet, tossed out by the owners… _if it was the men's baths---_ his thoughts were put on hold when a loud laugh erupted from the side.

"Tanoshii ne?"  
Kakashi found himself staring at Jiraiya or rather… then it struck like lightning! "Teme!" _Damn! I fell right into his trap!_

"Took a nice beating there didn't you? You look a lot better than before, so you should thank me haha!" The sennin-look-alike tapped his head with a smirk. "Mada, mada, this is only the beginning." Having said that, the clone disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

Kakashi got up gracefully, calmly dusting himself off. Ignoring the stares and laughs, the man smiled a tad bit too widely where it obviously showed behind his mask. "Don't worry… I'll make this much more interesting for you too, kuzo…" He disappeared from the spot with speed with the #1 priority being not to find Jiraiya but the annoying ANBU.

Every so often, Naruto couldn't help but burst out laughing from remembering the look on Kakashi's face. "Heh, heh…" Not dwelling on his prank, he heard a roaring laughter with women's giggles coming from a restaurant. Entering the smoke-filled building, he spotted the famous sennin lounged on a large sofa chair with at least one woman in each arm and a table full of sake bottles at his feet.

"Aw… Yuki-chan's so mean!" The 50-something year-old man pouted at one of the girls. Naruto shivered at the sight. "Hm?" Out of his bliss he managed to spot the ANBU in front of him.

"I have a message from whoever constantly sends you messages." Naruto plainly informed, not bothering to tell him the details in public.

"Eh? Is it from Saru-chan?" Jiraiya gave him a gleeful and drunk smile.

Sweatdropping, Naruto could only answer, "Ah."

"Ho… then can you tell me later---"

"_Saru-chan_ has something urgent to tell you." Naruto said firmly

A frightened look came onto the man's face, "Shimatta. Don't… don't tell me Saru-chan's… Saru-chan's pregnant?!" The women immediately reacted with pitiful sounds.

Naruto didn't say anything, only sending out a silent message through his eyeholes as if to say, "_Fuzakenezzo!_"

Stopping his laughing, Jiraiya stared at Naruto for a moment, "Wakatta, wakatta… gome my pretty-chans but we'll play some more later!" He got up a tad wobbly but regained his balance while motioning for Naruto to follow him, grabbing a napkin to wipe his hands along the way.

Setting up a chakra bubble that would soundproof their conversation. Naruto slid into his seat facing the entrance as Jiraiya sat at the opposite side. Taking out a large fan to cool himself, Jiraiya listened patiently. Naruto relayed the message to him just like how Sarutobi had told him in detail. Nearing the end of their meeting, a waiter came over to their table asking if they needed anything. Releasing the jutsu, the sennin ordered for more sake as something interesting caught Naruto's eyes. With a small smirk, he waited for the waiter to leave with their, well… the old man's order.

"So it has come down to this." Jiraiya said seriously, hands folded together.

Naruto didn't bother to answer the man immediately as their waiter returned with the drinks. "Ah…" Taking a cup of sake, he examined the contents, "Too bad I can't drink this."

"Ah! I forgot! Haha! You're underage!" The man laughed heartily. "Demo… a sip won't hurt… right?" He made a movement causing Naruto to grab a small tin dish to cover his face. "I still have a debt to pay back to you." An unsheathed sword was held at his neck while Kakashi stood next to him calmly.

"Hm… not bad." Naruto placed the dish back down with a now frozen-in-place clone with a Sharingan that had tried to paralyze him across from him. "But… too bad."

Kakashi felt a similar weapon being pointed to his throat, "You've left some holes out in the open."

The jounin stared to his right, _When did he?_

"Do you want me to monologue on how I knew? Since we have a bit of time…" The scarecrow man stood motionless. "You don't like women that much I know from what I've observed from before…" Kakashi restrained himself from reliving the memory. "But I was pretty impressed on how fast you got here." Naruto really meant what he just said. "Too bad the sennin loved women as much as you love watching men in bath houses---"

"---Oi! When did I ever say that?!" Kakashi countered immediately.

"Geez… it was written all over your face!" Naruto rolled his eyes. "But on another note… you couldn't help but get whatever the women got on you, off."

Kakashi couldn't help but admit that he desperately wanted to take a shower after immersing himself in a couch full of women. Not able to help himself he had to take out a fan to get rid of the many perfume scents that lingered on him.

"And! To end it all… the major breakthrough was…" The ANBU nodded his head towards the couches where the real Jiraiya sat. "…of course, him. And for all I know, he never met me so how did he know if I was underage or not?"

"Because you're short!"

"Urusai ne!"

Kakashi sighed, "Do you know what your major flaw is?"

"Talking too much."

He sweatdropped. "That too…" _At least he's not too full of himself, _"But…" He nodded back to where Jiraiya sat again. One of the women right next tot the sennin had just passed the man a small note. Very discreetly, Jiraiya accepted the small paper. "…for underestimating me."

With eyebrows raised for no one to see, Naruto examined the scene, "Oh really?" Jiraiya began unfolding the paper. "Are you sure it's the right message?"

Kakashi's eye widened. "You didn't…" He said quietly.

"Hm? What makes you think I didn't?" The ANBU asked nicely.

Eyes locked. The fire has now evolved into an inferno.

Jiraiya had imagined the night to be filled with sake, women, sake and more WOMEN! After gathering the latest information on Akatsuki, the man felt he should be rewarded with a fun-filled and relaxing night with no interruptions--- but when do these things ever work out your way?

While impressing the women surrounding him, one of the women in his arms had passed him a small note secretly as she gazed seductively at him. Not one to refuse, Jiraiya had taken the paper and realized that it had the Konoha seal on it. Looking back to the woman who seemed to have been staring off somewhere else gave him a small nod as if to say, "Open it!"

Chuckling while breaking the seal, tables and chairs were tossed right across his vision. The women screamed, scrambling to get out of the way. "MATTE! MY SWEETIES!" Jiraiya called after them desperately, eyes brimming with dramatic tears and arm outstretched uselessly after them.

Next thing the sennin knew, the note in his hand was snatched away. About to retaliate, he noticed it was a familiar face who had taken it. "Kakashi?" However, the said person didn't seem to hear him as his attention was on an ANBU with the kitsune mask. Eyes focused and sharpened on the shorter figure. _Kitsune…_ It was definitely the same mask Nozue had worn…

Naruto watched as Kakashi tore open the note, weapons still raised towards each other.

Kakashi felt both shocked and relieved simultaneously when he read its content

It was the original; the same message that he had planned to give Jiraiya. _He bluffed?_ His gaze went back to the ANBU. _The mask does help with hiding his expressions but _usually_ if anyone else was stuck in that situation, they would've shown it obviously and make a mistake. Ano kuzo… he's not simple._

"Oi Kakashi, what are you doing here?" Jiraya asked in an irritated manner, blaming the two for ruining his evening. "Were you the one who gave me that note?" The owner was near collapsing at the sight of the mess in his now near-empty restaurant.

"You seem very handy with that." Kakashi commented to Naruto indicating the Sandai Kitetsu, oblivious to any other sound and beings around them.

"Tousen." Naruto replied simply, "You used to be an ANBU right?" The silent response meant a 'yes', "How about putting our new weapons to the test? I promise I'll go easy on you."

"Oi, did you hear me just now?!" Jiraiya fumed; aggravated he was being ignored at the moment.

Kakashi smirked at the challenge, "You won't even be able to go easy on me."

_Their comebacks… so bad._ The sennin noted with a blank look. "Jiraiya." Both of them called his name. Confused with the change of conversation he couldn't say anything but generate a small "Hm?" sound. He waited for an answer again as he found the two glaring at each other again. _What the hell is wrong with the two of them?_ "Nani---?"

"---The Sandaime wants you to go back to Konoha immediately!" They both shouted at the same time.

"If you try to get out of it, I'll personally drag you back!" Kakashi added quietly, unaware he had just threatened the sennin.

"Heh, are you even capable of doing that?" The ANBU said in a false surprised tone.

"What---!?"

"Mah… I'll make my way back myself." Jiraiya sweatdropped not wanting to get dragged back- somehow getting the feeling they really would and can- by either of them.

"Good!" Was the not-so-warm reaction. The sennin could only watch idly, confused.

"Ikimasho." Kakashi spoke menacingly.

"Ladies first." Naruto replied lightly.

Before the owner could ask either of them for payment for the damage they have created, they disappeared right on the spot leaving Jiraiya behind to pay off the owner for them, cursing the two of them.

* * *

**-Back to Naruto Clones-**

Before his two team-mates could yell at him, Naruto showed them the "Earth" scroll that he managed to take from the undercovers of Orochimaru's. "What…? How…?" Sakura gaped at him, emerald eyes blinking unbelieving. Sasuke, too, was shocked.

Naruto gave them a teeth-baring grin, "Heh, heh, heh… I managed to take this when two teams knocked each other out. Lucky, lucky!"

Sasuke still seemed sceptical; however Sakura had slapped the blonde the back, "Nice one Naruto!" Glad to know they would get out of the forest soon, forgetting about the massive snake that they had witnessed moments ago.

"Naruto." The Uchiha called out his team-mate's name.

In the midst of his laughing, Naruto stopped with a quizzing look, "Eh? Nani, Sasuke-teme?"

Dark, onyx eyes pierced through him, "…" _What happened to that man?_ He wanted to ask but somehow he couldn't generate any words at the moment.

"Heh… if you're about to say smart I am---" Naruto smiled ruffling his own hair.

"---Of course not!" Sasuke retorted, blushing a bit when Naruto had ran his hand through his hair. "We should get something to eat and get out this forest." And he went ahead leaving the two behind.

While Sasuke had gone off to get some wood to help start their fire, Naruto sat with Sakura with fish-on-sticks in their hands. "Why do I have to stay behind?" Naruto pouted, portraying a three year-old.

"Geez… Sasuke-kun's able to get the wood himself without falling into a trap like you." Sakura responded, praising her crush. But something told her that that wasn't entirely true. _Naruto…_ When they were being attacked, she felt something different about the "loud-mouth brat" at that moment. "You're strong… Naruto." She whispered softly.

"Heh?!" The fish nearly fell from his hands. She had caught him off guard. Observing closer, he noticed that she really meant what she had just said. "Sakura..."

"Every time I always have to rely on the two of you to get out of dangerous situations…" The pink-haired kunoichi continued to murmur, "… it makes me feel… so useless." She buried her head into her knees not knowing why she was telling Naruto this.

The sound of the rushing river was audible to the next of them. Naruto sighed lightly, "Mataku…" He stared at the gutted fish solemnly. "Do you have someone important you want to protect?" He relayed Haku's words to her.

"Eh?" Sakura looked up to stare at him.

Naruto didn't bother to look up at his team-mate at any moment. "What is your purpose as a ninja?"

"Purpose…?" The girl felt at a loss for words, even her inner ego was quiet. _Purpose… purpose…_ It ran through her head constantly… _For Sasu- _"No." She thought out loudly, emerald, green eyes now faced him determinedly. "My purpose… my purpose now-" Footsteps approached them. Closing off their conversation she thanked Sasuke who had just arrived with an armload of sticks. However, Naruto began to feel that he may have underestimated the girl in front of her but didn't dwell on it as he moved on to cooking their fish.

After feeding themselves, the team decided to set-off once again in 15 minutes. Sakura took their water bottles to the river to refill. She gazed at her reflection in the rushing water, thinking back to their conversation. She had wanted to say that Sasuke wasn't the purpose for her becoming a ninja anymore but rather… taking out a kunai she carefully sheared off the hair that she had grown for Sasuke. _My purpose…_

"What's taking Sakura-chan so long?" Naruto whined as the two waited for their third member to come back. "I want to see the look on the other team's faces when we arrive at the tower before them, heh, heh!"

"Sorry for making you wait!" Filled water bottles were tossed to them.

Sasuke nearly gaped at her when he saw her while Naruto grinned on the side.

Her waist-long hair had been shortened significantly to mark her determined face that they rarely see. _Even though I don't know exactly what or how but… my purpose now is to become stronger!_

Not wanting to delay their journey, Sasuke decided to ask questions later. Ears perking, he quickly threw a shuriken towards the bushes. "Don't think you can hide from me." He warned the person.

Emerging, a ninja bearing the Leaf symbol on his hitai-ate came forth. With greyish hair put up in a ponytail, spectacles gleamed in the sunlight, he laughed nervously, "Sorry I'm not here to take your scroll, something happened and I got separated from my team-mates, so I'm making my way to the tower now."

Sasuke sharpened his gaze, "Who are you?"

"Yakushi Kabuto." He gave them a genuine-like smile, "It's good to meet you."

Sasuke didn't respond immediately while Sakura greeted him as well. On the side, Naruto scanned the newcomer; with a small smirk he whispered, "Omoshiroi."

* * *

**-Back to Naruto and Kakashi-**

Night batted the day away. Kakashi and Naruto managed to find a suitable location for their duel. A small lake separated the two of them, but the distance between them could easily vanish. Naruto was first to speak, "Heh… ready to realize that you're too old for this."

Kakashi could only spit out a laugh, "I'll admit that I'm older than you, but at least I have more height then you."

Gritting his teeth, Naruto calmly gripped the hilt of his new sword as Kakashi did the same. "How annoying… I hate spectactors."

The jounin cricked his neck, "For once, I agree with you… how about we change the rules?"

The ANBU shrugged, "Sure. There are an odd number of them, so there's bound to be a winner in the end."

Finally coming to a mutual agreement, Kakashi readied himself, "Minus one point for each one you kill."

Leaving the blade in its sheath, Naruto frowned, "Mou… that makes things difficult..." The clouds shifted away revealing the moon, lighting up their surroundings. In the surface of the waters, reflected people with various weapons in hand situated all around the two Konoha ninjas, preparing to attack them.

Watching a particular leaf float around towards the lake; it lightly landed on the surface causing a small wave of ripples surrounding it.

Time seemed to pause momentarily.

"… But this should be fun."

* * *

**AN:** It's really nice to see you guys again =)! You made it!!! Thank you very much! I LOVE YOU PATIENT READERS! My somewhat-of-a-goal was to make Kakashi and Naruto's character to become more open when they're with each other because it would really help with the pairing in the future… ^.^ Ibiki could easily find out that Naruto was an ANBU but lets pretend that Konoha has lots of blue-eyed 12 year-olds :D It's true that Naruto can kill Orochimaru right off the bat, but it's part of my plan to let him get away haha… Some of you may not have heard of the Craftsman Village it makes a brief appearance in the anime and there's a bit more information at this site… .?p=craftsman ^.^ I know Kakashi's dogs can only smell a target at a short-range but i'm assuming he has dogs who can track people from farther distances :P And yes, i used the swords' names from ONE PIECE (woot!) The changes in the plotline begins here almost, somewhat, though I may keep some things the way they are- just because ^^. Although the chapter isn't long enough to make up for the long absence but I tried to make it as long as my mind can turn… haha… Thank you once again for staying till the end of the story and the author's notes heehee… love you all!! I know, I know, the story is moving very slowly which I'm very sorry about but I'm hoping to see at the next chapter which I once again hope to be up by this year!!


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